GRAND RAPIDS – Michigan's school accreditation system “no longer has relevance” state educators say, as every school in the state has met state criteria despite sliding backward on federal testing goals.

The state Education Department released announced Monday that 79 percent of Michigan’s public school buildings and 93 percent of the school districts made federal testing goals – called “adequate yearly progress” – for the 2010-11 school year.

That's down from 86 percent of schools and 95 percent of districts making AYP the previous school year.

More than 700 schools missed the mark -- up from 509 last year. Those figures include 28 schools in Kent County – 16 in Grand Rapids – and seven in Ottawa County.

But despite a growing number of schools falling short, every Michigan school scored high enough to be granted state accreditation. State leaders already are planning changes for the upcoming school year and expect to see scores drop in many schools – which has concerned administrators and board members fearing a public backlash.

“The bar is so low that everyone meets it,” said Jan Ellis, an Education Department spokeswoman. “So in that sense, the accreditation no longer has relevance.”

LIST

Schools falling short on 'adequate yearly progress'



Schools must meet testing goals called "adequate yearly progress" in order to meet federal No Child Left Behind requirements. A school must test 95 percent of its students in total, and in each required student demographic group defined by the federal law, including English language learners, students living in poverty and students with disabilities. The list shows the schools that did not meet the federal goals, and the subgroup where it fell short.

Belding

Belding Middle: Disabilities

Comstock Park

Comstock Park Middle School: Disabilities

Comstock Park North Kent High: All students

Godfrey-Lee

Godfrey Elementary: Disabilities

Lee High School: Hispanics

Vision Quest High: All students

Godwin Heights

Learning Center: All students, black students, poverty

Godwin Heights High School: Black students

Grand Rapids

Adelante: All students

Burton Elementary: Disabilities

Burton Middle: Students with disabilities, English language learners

Campus Elementary: Disabilities

Central High: All students, black students, Hispanics, English language learners

Covell Elementary: Hispanics, disabilities

Creston Community High: All students

Creston High: All students, black students, poverty

Ford Middle School: Disabilities

Mulick Park Elementary: Disabilities

Ottawa Hills High: All students, black students, poverty

Southeast Career Pathways: All students

Southwest Community Campus: Disabilities

Union Community High: All students

Union High School: All students, poverty, Hispanics, English-language learners

Westwood Middle: English-language learners

Greenville

Greenville Middle: Disabilities

Greenville High: Disabilities

Hamilton

Hamilton Elementary: Disabilities

Hastings

Hastings Middle: Disabilities

Holland

Holland High: Disabilities

Van Raalte: All students

Hopkins

Hopkins Elementary: White students, poverty

Kentwood

East Kentwood Freshman Center: All students

East Kentwood High: Disabilities

Pine Rest Alternative: All students

Northview

Northview Alternative High: All students

Ottawa Area ISD

Ottawa Area Center: All students, Disabilities, white students

Sheldon Pines: All students

Thornapple Kellogg

Thornapple Kellogg Alternative: All students

West Ottawa

West Ottawa High Campus: Disabilities

Zeeland

Zeeland East High: Disabilities

Charters

Vista Charter Academy: Disabilities

A school must test 95 percent of its students in total and in each required student demographic group defined by the federal law, including English language learners, students living in poverty and students with disabilities.

Schools must show continual growth in the number of students deemed “proficient” on standardized tests or face sanctions as part of the No Child Left Behind Act.

But state leaders this year raised the “cut scores” – the level at which students are considered proficient – after an education advocacy group pointed out that students could answer as little as 40 percent of questions correctly on some tests and still meet the mark, and said the state was “lying to parents” about how well their students were performing.

The state Board of Education in February voted to raise the cut scores, which could be in place when students take Michigan Education Assessment Program tests in the fall.

“We need an accurate and honest reflection of where our schools are in preparing our students,” state Superintendent Mike Flanagan said in a release issued by the Education Department.

The No Child Left Behind Act called for all students to be considered proficient by 2013, but Education Secretary Arne Duncan this month said he'll waive that rule for states that adopt reforms and raise standards. Michigan was one of the first states to apply for a waiver.

Of the schools in the region missing the mark, more than half were tied to struggles with the students with disabilities subgroup.

All four of Grand Rapids Public Schools' comprehensive high schools did not make the goals, along with three middle schools and five alternative education programs. Sixteen city schools in all did not make AYP, double last year's tally.

"While I am pleased to report that the district as a whole made Adequate Yearly Progress for the fourth consecutive year, we cannot lose sight of the fact that a larger number of schools failed to meet AYP this year compared to past years," Superintendent Bernard Taylor said.

"It is clear that we must redouble our efforts, particularly around reading and our special education students. The bottom line is that we have high expectations for our students, and now the state is re-setting the bar to more accurately reflect what we know all students are capable of achieving."

Multiple schools in Comstock Park, Godfrey-Lee, Godwin Heights, Greenville, Kentwood and the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District also did not meet the goals.

Kentwood leaders said their high school fell short because of an administrative error with a 29-student special needs class that caused some tests to not be counted, dropping the school below the 95-percent testing mandate.

The Freshman Center also did not meet the goals, which Superintendent Scott Palczewski said based around confusion with a particular student. Freshman take only the social studies MEAP tests, which is not used for No Child goals.

Palczewski said the district appealed to state Education Department, but was denied.

“We understand rules and guidelines and will take our medicine on this one, but it certainly seems like technicalities hurt our AYP status in both of those buildings,” he said.

The Education Department also released the state Education YES! report cards, noting that just over half earned A grades. The report cards are a compilation of standardized test scores, AYP designation and various, various, self-reported indicators such as family involvement, curriculum, attendance, and teacher training.

School and district AYP information and Michigan School Report Card scores are posted on a new state website called MI School Data at www.mischooldata.org.

E-mail Dave Murray: dmurray@grpress.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ReporterDMurray