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2014 Massachusetts School Report Card Overview
JUSTUS C. RICHARDSON MIDDLE SCHOOL (00790410)
Dracut Public School District (00790000) 1570 Lakeview Ave , Dracut, MA 01826
Maria McGuinness, Principal Phone: 978.957.3330
Grades Served: 06,07,08 Website: http://www.dracutps.org

Report cards help parents/guardians and the general public see where schools and districts are succeeding and where there is still work to do. This report card overview answers important questions about our school's performance. For the full report card containing additional data contact the school's principal or visit the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s website at http://profiles.doe.mass.edu. For more information about report card data, visit our Profiles Help page.



How is our school doing overall?
Accountability and assistance levels
Our school
Level3
Among lowest performing 20% of schools and subgroups
Our district
Level3
One or more schools in the district classified into Level 3

Most schools are assigned a level from 1-5, with those meeting their proficiency gap-narrowing goals in Level 1 and the lowest performing in Levels 4 and 5. A district is typically assigned a level based on the level of its lowest performing school. Placing schools and districts into levels helps districts know which schools need more support, and helps the state know which districts need the most assistance.

School percentile

School percentiles (1-99) indicate how a school is performing overall compared to other schools that serve the same or similar grades. Our school's percentile is below.

Percentile
Lowest performingHighest performing

Overall progress in narrowing gaps

Massachusetts aims to reduce proficiency gaps by half between 2011 and 2017.

All studentsDid Not Meet Target
High needs studentsDid Not Meet Target
Low income studentsDid Not Meet Target
Students with disabilities
English language learners & former ELLs



How does our school's achievement over time compare to the district and the state?

Percentage of students scoring proficient or above on Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS), 2011-2014.

English language artsMathematicsScience
2011201220132014
2011201220132014
2011201220132014
Our school
%69676966
38343743
28272530
Middle Schools in our district
%68676966
38343643
28272530
Middle Schools in MA
%75737374
55565755
43464345


How does our school's growth compare to the district and the state?

Student Growth Percentiles (SGPs) measure gains in student achievement from year to year. SGPs between 40 and 60 represent moderate growth. Our school's median SGPs for 2014 are below. (Note: Growth values are truncated.)

English language artsMathematics
Lower growthHigher growth
15099
Lower growthHigher growth
15099
Our school   32.0    36.0
Middle Schools in our district  46.0  48.0
Middle Schools in MA  50.0  50.0


How does our school's enrollment compare to the district and the state?

Total enrollment
Our school
Our district
Our state
6223,816955,739
Our
school
Middle Schools in our districtMiddle Schools in MA
By high needs population
#

%
#

%
#

%
Low income students
162 26.0
162 26.0
62,370 35.3
Students with disabilities
8012.9
80 12.9
30,768 17.4
English language learners
2 0.3
2 0.3
9,351 5.3


How do our school's teachers and classrooms compare to the district and the state?

General information
Our
school

Middle Schools in our district
Middle Schools in MA
Teachers (#)
35.8
35.8
13,501.4
Core academic classes taught by highly qualified teachers (%)
100.0
100.0
95.6
Average class size (#)
24.8
24.8
19.2
Student : teacher ratio
17.4 to 1
17.4 to 1
13.1 to 1

How is our school doing on other important measures?

Attendance
Our
school

Middle Schools in our district
Middle Schools in MA
Attendance rate (%)
95.1
95.1
95.5
Average days absent per student (#)
8.7
8.7
7.9
Discipline



2014 In-school suspension rate (%)
4.4
4.4
2.9
2014 Out-of-school suspension rate (%)
6.8
6.8
5.1
High school completion
Our school
Our district
Our state
2012 5-year graduation rate (%)
-
89.1
87.5
2013 4-year graduation rate (%)
-
82.2
85.0
2013 annual dropout rate (%)
-
2.5
2.2
2012 graduates attending institutions of higher education* (%)
-
83.4
75.6
2014 12th graders taking 1+ Advanced Placement courses (%)
-
39.3
35.6
2014 Advanced Placement tests with scores of 3 or higher (%)
-
65.6
68.4
2014 SAT average score - Reading
-
500
508
2014 SAT average score - Writing
-
489
499
2014 SAT average score - Math
-
503
523
2013 MassCore** - Completing a rigorous course of study (%)
-
100.0
70.2
*Postsecondary enrollment data includes any student enrolling in an institution of higher education within 16 months of earning a high school diploma
**MassCore: 4 years of English & math, 3 years of history & lab-based science, 2 years of a foreign language, 1 year of arts & 5 additional "core" courses

What else should you know about our school?
The Justus C. Richardson Middle School celebrates young adolescents. Efforts focus on providing a positive and nurturing climate, one that provides a safe, healthy, and challenging environment.

The school community is committed to providing for the educational needs of our students. We support every student as they grow and develop to their fullest potential intellectually, emotionally, socially and physically. We believe in fostering good citizenship and personal responsibility.

The curriculum supports the attainment of knowledge, skills and habits of mind. Students learn an appreciation of arts and involvement with creative expressions. Technology is an integral part of curriculum designed to prepare our students for future success. With transfer and generalization of knowledge and skills, we are preparing our students for the academic standards of high school. Our curriculum encourages movement toward increasingly abstract thinking and focuses on development of independent learning strategies and critical thinking skills.

We are a Professional Learning Community that strives to use the most efficient practices educating our students. Adoption of workshop models in our ELA classrooms challenges students to read and write at the highest levels. Science teachers have participated in Cross-District Science Mapping to align our science curriculum with the Next Generation Science Standards. Our mathematics teachers utilize resources from Big Ideas Mathematics to challenge our young learners. Our history teachers have worked with educators at the high school to reconfigure the sequencing of our history courses. Students succeed in arts, technology, health, STEAM, music, physical education and consumer science.

The Richardson Middle School has an active PTO, School Site Council and volunteers who all work tirelessly to make our school a successful learning community.
To view our school's full report card, visit http://profiles.doe.mass.edu. For more information about report card data, visit our Profiles Help page.
Published by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

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