Numerous school districts excelling in outcomes established around the vision for education in Kansas were recognized during the Kansas State Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, April 13.
The vision for education in Kansas – Kansas leads the world in the success of each student – was announced in 2015 by the State Board of Education and the Kansas State Department of Education. That announcement was followed shortly by a new accreditation model, Kansas Education Systems Accreditation, which accredits at the system level to create systemic change among school buildings in a district.
The Kansans Can Star Recognition Program is designed to support the KESA process by providing a level of recognition that helps districts identify where they want to focus their improvement efforts.
The program recognizes district success in the outcome measures Kansans said they value. These outcomes, categorized as either quantitative or qualitative measures, are serving as a roadmap to help Kansas reach its educational vision.
District recognition in the quantitative measures area are automatically calculated by KSDE based on collected district data. No application is necessary.
Districts can receive gold, silver, bronze or copper stars in the qualitative measures of:
- Social-emotional growth.
- Kindergarten readiness.
- Individual Plan of Study.
- Civic engagement.
Districts can receive gold, silver, bronze or copper stars in these quantitative measure areas:
- Academically prepared for postsecondary.
- High school graduation.
- Postsecondary success.
There also were 54 districts that achieved the Commissioner’s Award; 39 received the Commissioner’s Award with Honors; and four received the Commissioner’s Award – Highest Distinction.
The Salina Diocese received the following awards:
- Gold Star in High School Graduation Rate
- Gold Star in Post-secondary Success.
- Copper Star for Academically Prepared for Post-Secondary
- Commissioner’s Award