WCPS Shows Slight Drop in Graduation Rate, Improvements in Math and English Language Arts

The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) has released its annual Maryland School Report Card, detailing school performance across the state for the 2025 academic year. The data indicates a positive trend in school ratings under the Maryland Accountability System, with an increasing percentage of schools achieving higher star designations.

This article was updated 11/5/2025 to include statements from WCPS.

For the 2024-25 school year, 43 percent of Maryland schools earned the top two ratings of four or five stars, marking an improvement from 41 percent in the previous year and 38 percent two years prior. In contrast, Washington County saw 56.4% of its schools reach the four- or five-star benchmark. Furthermore, the proportion of schools achieving three or more stars rose to 86 percent, up from 83 percent in 2023-24 and 80 percent in 2022-23. These ratings are determined by a comprehensive set of indicators, which vary for elementary, middle, and high schools.

The indicators used for elementary and middle schools include Academic Achievement, Academic Progress, Progress in Achieving English Language Proficiency, and School Quality and Student Success. High schools are assessed on Academic Achievement, Graduation Rate, Progress in Achieving English Language Proficiency, Readiness for Postsecondary Success, and School Quality and Student Success. Schools are assigned a star rating from one to five based on the total points accumulated across these different measures.

To foster transparency and continuous improvement, Maryland is undertaking an evaluation of its accountability system. Central to this effort is the Maryland Accountability Advisory Committee, comprising experts and staff who routinely utilize the data for school improvement initiatives. This committee is building upon recommendations previously made by the Maryland Assessment and Accountability Task Force, with the goal of supporting the effective implementation of the school accountability system. The task force’s recommendations were presented to the State Board of Education in December 2024. Since June 2025, the Accountability Advisory Committee has convened monthly, working towards developing proposed next steps for submission to the State Board by the close of the current year. The coordination of this work is being managed by the Center for Assessment, a non-profit organization dedicated to the design, implementation, and evaluation of assessment and accountability systems.

The report card utilizes several key indicators to assess school performance, including Academic Achievement, Academic Progress, Progress in Achieving English Language Proficiency, School Quality and Student Success, Graduation Rate, and Readiness for Post-Secondary Success. Overall, the data indicates varying levels of performance across different grade levels and student demographic groups.

Locally, Washington County Public Schools continues to see an increase in enrollment, from 22,549 in 2024 to 22,772 in 2025. The school system saw improvements in key metrics, but a slight drop in graduation rate.

Elementary schools in Washington County earned a total of 59.4 out of a possible 100 points across the assessed indicators. Within this category, Academic Achievement accounted for 9.9 points, Academic Progress for 19.4 points, Progress in Achieving English Language Proficiency for 6.8 points, and School Quality and Student Success for 23.3 points. These scores reflect the proficiency and growth of students in core subjects, their development of English language skills, and the overall environment and engagement within the schools. While none of these scores are an improvement from last year, English Language Proficiency met the state annual target requirement, while Academic Achievement did not.

Middle schools in the county achieved a total of 54.4 out of 100 possible points. Their performance breakdown shows 10.2 points for Academic Achievement, 20.5 points for Academic Progress, 4.1 points for Progress in Achieving English Language Proficiency, and 19.6 points for School Quality and Student Success. The middle school data highlights specific areas for improvement, particularly in the progress of multilingual learners. While Academic Achievement, Academic Progress, and School Quality and Student Success showed improvement from last year, none of the metrics met state annual targets.

High schools in Washington County recorded a total of 62 out of a possible 100 points. This includes 18.4 points for Academic Achievement, 13.5 points for Graduation Rate, 4.3 points for Progress in Achieving English Language Proficiency, 8.8 points for Readiness for Post-Secondary Success, and 17.0 points for School Quality and Student Success. The high school results indicate a stronger performance in graduation rates and a moderate showing in preparing students for future academic and career endeavors. While Academic Achievement and English Language Proficiency improved from the previous year, none of Washington County’s metrics met state annual targets.

The report card also provides detailed proficiency rates in Mathematics and English Language Arts across all student groups for elementary, middle, and high school levels. For instance, across all students, proficiency in mathematics stands at 35.9% for elementary, 30.8% for middle, and 36.1% for high school. In English Language Arts, proficiency rates are higher, with 47.1% for elementary, 56.6% for middle, and 79.7% for high school students. Performance varies significantly among different racial and ethnic groups, as well as for students with disabilities and economically disadvantaged students, underscoring the need for targeted interventions. While most Washington County student demographic groups showed improvement in math proficiency, none met state target goals. All student demographic groups showed improvement in English language arts, and only multilingual learners failed to meet state target goals.

Graduation rates for high schools also show variation by student demographic. The overall four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate is 89.67%, with the five-year rate at 90.52%. While Asian students achieve a 100% graduation rate in both four and five-year cohorts, other groups, such as Students with Disabilities and Multilingual Learners, show lower rates, with four-year graduation rates around 68.57% and 68.09% respectively. Economically disadvantaged students have a four-year graduation rate of 85.13%. While only White students showed graduation rate improvements, Asian, White, and Economically Disadvantaged students continue to meet state target graduation goals.

“We are so grateful for the hard work and talent that every teacher, support professional, and administrator in Washington County invests in helping students succeed,” said Dr. April Zentmeyer, President of the Washington County Board of Education. “Our school improvement teams and leaders will continue to work collaboratively at the school level and the district level to support the needs of our students and help them prepare for the next steps in their education.”

Notably, Washington County’s dropout rate increased slightly from 6.40% in 2023 to 7.09% in 2024, with graduation rates decrease slightly from 90.75% to 89.67%, respectively. Additional data provided includes instructional staff at 69.4 per 1,000 pupils and professional staff at 11.6 per 1,000 pupils. Instructional assistants number 22.6 per 1,000 pupils. The average school day is 6.6 hours, and the school year comprises 180 days.

The Maryland Report Card website offers a comprehensive resource for families, educators, and the public to access and understand school-level results. Data is available at the state, district, and individual school levels, with downloadable reports and disaggregated data for specific student groups. The website also provides informational resources, including a user guide and concise summary documents explaining the calculation of star ratings for different school levels. In addition to star ratings, the report card provides access to a wide array of data points, such as enrollment figures, attendance rates, state assessment performance, graduation rates, college and career readiness indicators, and college enrollment trends. Residents can use this information to gauge the performance of their local schools and understand how various factors contribute to overall school quality.

Article by Mel Anara, based upon information from the Maryland State Department of Education and Washington County Public Schools.

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