Avon Local Schools Back to Excellent With Distinction

has returned to the state's highest rating in the Ohio Department of Education Report Cards, which were released Wednesday morning.

The district received an Excellent With Distinction rating, meeting all 26 of the state's standards. You can see the report card in the attached PDF document.

Avon Local Schools were rated Excellent in 2010 and Excellent With Distinction in 2009 and 2008. 

The six ratings are Excellent with Distinction, Excellent, Effective, Continuous Improvement, Academic Watch and Academic Emergency.

Superintendent Jim Reitenbach was out of the office and not available for comment.

Over the last three years, eighth-grade proficiencies have soared. Science proficiency is the most remarkable, going from 73.5 percent in 2009 to 86.5 percent in 2010 to 93.3 percent in 2011. Reading proficiency has jumped from 86 percent in 2009 to 94.5 percent in 2010 and 98.1 percent in 2011. Math proficiency has gone from 90.9 percent in 2009 to 92 percent in 2010 to 94.8 percent in 2011. 

Conversely, fifth-grade science declined from 89.7 in 2009 to 88.6 percent in 2010 and 86.2 percent in 2011.

Third-grade reading proficiency improved from 93.6 percent in 2010 to 94.6 percent this year. Third-grade math proficiency improved from 93.9 percent to 95.3 percent.

At the high school level, Ohio Graduation Test proficiency in reading was 95.6 percent, practically unchanged from 95.5 percent in 2010. After falling from 96.2 percent in 2009 to 90.9 percent in 2010, math proficiency climbed back to 94.1 percent this year. Social Studies proficiency rose from 91.7 percent in 2010 to 94.9 percent this year.

Writing proficiency had also tumbled from 2009 to 2010, from 99.6 percent to 94.3 percent. But it rebounded in 2011 to 96.3 percent. Science proficiency had also taken a sharp fall from 2009 to 2010, falling from 95.3 to 86 percent. It improved to 91.2 percent in 2011.

In nearby districts, Avon Lake, Westlake, Bay Village and Sheffield-Sheffield Lake were all rated Excellent. North Ridgeville and Rocky River earned Excellent with Distinction. Lorain went from Academic Watch to Continuous Improvement. Elyria and Lakewood were rated Effective.