Several Los Lunas Schools improve their performance

LOS LUNAS — “We are thrilled to share that several schools within the Los Lunas Schools district have made significant strides in their performance,” wrote LLS media specialist Sidney Olivas in a press release. “According to the latest school designations released by the New Mexico Public Education Department (NMPED), nearly every LLS school site has a designation of traditional or spotlight.”

School designations are released annually by NMPED through Vistas, the state’s most recent performance evaluation tool. The highest-scoring schools are assigned a designation of spotlight, and schools designated as traditional are in good standing.

The designations TSI (Targeted Support and Improvement), CSI (Comprehensive Support and Improvement) and MRI (More Rigorous Intervention) indicate that support is needed and allows PED to identify schools that require varying levels of additional support and funding based on their needs.

For the 2023-24 school year, Ann Parish, Los Lunas, Valencia and Tomé elementary schools, as well as Los Lunas Family School, improved their status to a traditional designation.

“This achievement is particularly noteworthy as these five schools were previously categorized as needing improvement,” the press release states. “Their advancement to traditional status reflects not only their hard work, but also a commitment to enhancing the educational environment for all students.”

Bosque Farms and Katherine Gallegos elementary schools also retained a spotlight designation, meaning “they maintained an overall index score above the 75th percentile and are among the highest performing schools.”

According to PED’s website, the designations are assessed based on student test scores and other state assessments along with other required criteria from the Every Student Succeeds Act as mandated by the U.S. Department of Education.

More specifically, “schools are rated on a point system based on math, reading and science achievement/assessment results; growth in math and reading across time; student attendance and progress toward English language proficiency for students that are English learners.”

High schools are also scored on post-secondary readiness, graduation rates and graduation rate growth. However, this year PED’s scoring system has seen some updates and has “shifted focus slightly.”

“In addition to evaluating overall student proficiency through test scores, the department also considered individual student growth. This holistic approach allows for a better understanding of how each student is progressing, highlighting the importance of personalized education and support,” the release reads.

This revitalized scoring system follows an internal review of PED’s accountability processes and business rules from the U.S Department of Education last year in which accountability failures were found.

The internal review was prompted by almost 300 appeals from districts and charter schools across the state in 2023 who disagreed with the designations provided.

According to an article published by New Mexico Education on its website in June 2024, “PED revised school accountability designations for the 2022-2023 school year, acknowledging the original designations released to the public last November were incorrect for many New Mexico schools. This move was made after a visit from the U.S. Department of Education revealed the department’s accountability calculations were not aligned to federal requirements and contained significant errors … PED has since revitalized Vistas with the correct designations and a new design to help promote educational equity and ensure that no student group or school falls behind.”

“We are very proud of the school designations,” said LLS Acting Superintendent Susan Chavez in the release. “Earning and improving upon designations happen each day, not just when we see the results. Every moment counts. Thank you to our students and staff for all their hard work and effort.”

For more information on individual schools, visit nmvistas.org.