By Rodd Cayton, The Paper.
Rio Rancho Public Schools is touting academic gains the district says will help it reach an important goal. Ten of the district’s 11 elementary schools improved in English language arts proficiency and eight improved in mathematics in the latest NM Vistas accountability results. A district news release also says 10 of 21 RRPS schools have earned Spotlight status — the highest grade in New Mexico’s evaluation metric.
Superintendent Robert Dodd, who is in his first school year as head of RRPS, has declared a goal of every campus in the district achieving Spotlight status by 2030. “These gains reflect our students’ hard work, the dedication and expertise of our educators, and the support families provide every day,” he said. “We are proud of this progress, and we have much more work to do. Our goal is for every student to build a strong foundation and continue on a path to success throughout their years in RRPS.”
According to the release, elementary school highlights include:
Increases of 13.7 percentage points in English language arts proficiency and 12.2 points in mathematics proficiency at Colinas del Norte Elementary. Those gains are highest and second-highest, respectively, among medium-sized schools statewide.
Vista Grande Elementary also placed within the top 10 elementary schools in New Mexico for highest growth in both literacy and math among medium-sized schools: 9.6 percentage points in English language arts and 8.1 points in math.
Ernest Stapleton Elementary saw English language arts proficiency rise 6.5 percentage points to 66.7 percent, while mathematics proficiency increased 3.4 points.
At the secondary level, Mountain View Middle School and Lincoln Middle School earned Spotlight status, as did Cleveland High School, Rio Rancho High School and Rio Rancho Cyber Academy. Each high school campus also increased its accountability points for college and career readiness. Independence High School recorded proficiency gains of 5.3 percentage points in English language arts and 15.4 points in science.
NM Vistas was developed by the New Mexico Public Education Department in 2019 to meet public reporting requirements under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act. The Spotlight designation is reserved for the top 25% of schools in the state. Spotlight status is based on measures that include achievement, academic growth and attendance, along with high school graduation rates and college and career readiness, according to RRPS. District officials say RRPS is using the results to guide improvements already underway, including expanded math acceleration opportunities and intervention and enrichment pilots at selected elementary schools. The results will also inform the district’s upcoming strategic planning process, with opportunities for community input this fall.
“We want RRPS to be the educational provider of choice for families, and we have to earn that trust through the education and opportunities we provide,” Dodd said. “We thank families for choosing our schools. They deserve to know how their school is doing and what we are doing to help their children succeed.”
District Spokesperson Wyndham Kemsley said RRPS is working toward Dodd’s goal of making it the best school district in the state, and that the NM Vistas should be seen through an appropriate lens.
“While we are encouraged that 10 of our 11 elementary schools improved in ELA and eight improved in mathematics, we also recognize that a single proficiency measure does not tell the full story of a school’s performance,” he said. “The goal is not simply to produce a higher number on next year’s report card. We want to build sustainable improvement across every school, including our highest-performing schools. That means continuing to monitor student progress throughout the year, responding to the data in real time, supporting teachers with effective instructional practices, and maintaining high expectations for every student.”