LEAD Academy Scores Level 5 on TVAAS

LEAD Academy High School scored a Level 5 last year on the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS), the highest ranking given to schools by the state department of education.

“Our students and teachers did a great job leading up to the new state assessments last year,” said Chris Reynolds, LEAD’s CEO. “We know that our academic program is strong, and the results of the TNReady assessments are another indication that we are fulfilling our mission to prepare students for college and for life.

“LEAD Academy’s teachers and students endured much last year as we moved the 9th-Grade to Cameron and prepared to move our remaining grades from St. Vincent’s campus downtown to First Avenue South,” he continued. “This is especially great work when one considers what we asked from the high school community and we are thrilled with our students’ performance.”

The LEAD Academy Class of 2016 was the third consecutive LEAD class of seniors to earn 100 percent acceptance to college. Scoring Level 5 on the TVAAS means students at LEAD are growing academically at the fastest rate in the state.

“The test is definitely more rigorous,” said Dr. Amy Hunter, LEAD’s director of curriculum and assessment. “We are excited about that because it provides a better opportunity for our students to demonstrate that they are becoming college- and career-ready. This information is providing us with a baseline for how we will continue to serve our students and evaluate future progress. “

Dr. Hunter said LEAD’s commitment to four key areas will help improve scores this year and beyond. The network is focused on providing a comprehensive curriculum across grades 5-12; working with all students in each category on the state assessments for targeted improvement; focusing on writing about reading in curriculum and on the network’s interim assessments (NIAs); and focusing on solving complex math tasks rather than on simple computation, which reinforces rigor in the mathematics curriculum.

The statewide Report Card is available here and was released earlier today.