Press Release

REPORT CARD MEETINGS BEGIN THIS WEEK

Report cards for each of the district's elementary, middle and high schools are available beginning this week.

Each report card provides a rich variety of school performance data and a narrative describing the school's setting.

Elementary and middle school students will be given copies to carry home to parents this week. Parents of high school students may ask for a copy at their school.

The report cards are also posted on the district's web site. The district's Internet address is www.denver.k12.co.us. Look under Schools and then choose the level - elementary, middle or high schools - that interests you.

Also on the Internet, and available through your local school, is a guide to the report cards that explains each data category in greater detail.

Beginning tonight (May 30), the district will host a series of community meetings to gather ideas and feedback on the usefulness of the report cards.

The five meetings will be held across the city. Each meeting will run from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

The five meetings are:

• Tuesday, May 30, at Maxwell Elementary School (14390 E. Bolling Drive).
• Thursday, June 1, at East High School (1545 Detroit St.)
• Monday, June 5, at Rishel Middle School (451 S. Tejon St.)
• Tuesday, June 6, at Merrill Middle School (1551 S. Munroe St.)
• Wednesday, June 7, at North High School (2960 N. Speer Blvd.)

The report cards provide each school's results from the Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) and indicate how that school ranked against others in the city. In high school report cards, where CSAP data is not yet available, results from the Iowa Tests of Educational Development are reported.

The report cards show how different groups within the school performed on CSAP, including students who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, students not receiving special education services, students who speak only English, and students tested in Spanish.

Included in each report card is a statistical glimpse of the school, including the ethnicity of the student body, the percentage of the student population that is eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, and the percent of English language learners. The report cards indicate the number of English language learners who speak Spanish and those who speak a language other than Spanish.

Principals and teacher data are also provided. The report cards detail teacher absenteeism rates (and whether the absenteeism is for professional development reasons) and the range of experience among a school's faculty. The percent of teachers on each staff with a master's degree is also available.

The principal data indicate how long the principal has served in that particular school, and how long he or she has worked as a principal overall.

Budget categories itemized in the report cards provide information about what each school spends on school management, classroom instruction, instructional support, additional support, and transportation.