Albemarle County Public Schools Among Highest Rated School Divisions in Virginia

By Albemarle County Public Schools

ALBEMARLE COUNTY, Va. — Albemarle County Public Schools (ACPS) ranks among the highest rated school systems in the Commonwealth of Virginia. That is according to data released by the Virginia Department of Education through its new School Performance and Support Framework, which rates schools based on 2024-25 Standards of Learning data, attendance records and performance data for all public schools in Virginia.

The Framework measures performance across four categories: mastery, growth, readiness and graduation, with different measures used depending on the school level. Elementary and middle schools are rated on mastery, as evidenced by Standards of Learning performance; growth, measured by comparing current performance to prior-year results in reading and math; and readiness, which reflects chronic absenteeism in grades K-8 and enrollment and success in advanced coursework in middle school. High schools are measured on mastery; readiness for life after graduation, including preparation for further education, employment or enrollment in military service; and their on-time graduation rates.

Schools are expected to maintain a Framework rating of 80 or better. Those with a rating of 90 or better earn a “Distinguished” designation, and those with a rating of 80-89 are considered “On Track.” Schools with a rating of 65-79 are rated “Off Track,” and those below 65 are rated as “Needs Intensive Support.” Schools listed as Off Track or Needs Intensive Support are eligible for federal and state grant funding to provide greater levels of service to help them improve in mastery, growth and readiness.

Two-thirds (66.6%) of all ACPS schools met or exceeded Virginia standards, on par with the statewide results of 66%. However, one-third (33.3%) received the Distinguished designation, significantly outpacing the statewide results of 23% receiving that designation. ACPS also ranks among the jurisdictions with the highest percentage of Distinguished schools among those with populations above 100,000.

Regional Success

At the regional level, ACPS had the four highest-scoring elementary schools: Brownsville (101.6), Murray (98.3), Ivy (96.5) and Stony Point (93.7). Brownsville’s score was the highest of any elementary school in the Commonwealth. Murray ranked highest in the region for mastery across all three subject areas—reading, math and science. Ivy and Brownsville were in the top five in each subject as well. Red Hill ranked at the top for growth in reading, and Brownsville earned top honors for growth in math. Ivy led the region in readiness.

At the regional level for middle schools, Henley (90.7) was the only middle school to earn a Distinguished designation, and Lakeside (89.2) was ranked as the third-best performing middle school in the region. Henley was the top middle school in mastery of reading and science, and second to Lakeside in mastery of math. Lakeside also ranked in the top five for mastery of reading and science. Burley (79.9) was among the top schools for growth in reading, and Lakeside ranked among the top five middle schools for growth in math and English learner progress. Journey (80.4) and Henley both ranked among the top five regionally for readiness (chronic absenteeism). Walton (83.9) met the state standard.

All high schools met or exceeded standards, with Western Albemarle (107.0) and Community Lab (91.7) both receiving Distinguished recognition and Monticello (88.5) and Albemarle (87.7) remaining On Track. Western Albemarle’s ranking placed the school as the highest performer regionally. Western Albemarle also topped the list for mastery in reading and was second for mastery of science. Western Albemarle, Monticello and Albemarle were the top three schools in the region for college enrollment readiness.

“The ACPS Framework scores have some bright spots, and we are proud of the work our teachers and administration put in every day to help our students succeed,” noted ACPS Superintendent Dr. Matthew Haas. “And we also recognize there are key areas for improvement. It is clear that we need to provide greater support for our elementary learners, and for our students with disabilities, economically disadvantaged students and Black students, because that is where we are experiencing the greatest disparities in meeting standards at all levels."

ACPS Performance Overview

At the middle school level, Burley narrowly missed the 80.0 standard with a Framework score of 79.9. More than half of all elementary schools met or exceeded standards: Brownsville (101.7), Murray (98.4), Ivy (96.5), Stony Point (93.7), Hollymead (91.1), Baker-Butler (89.1), Red Hill (87.5) and Broadus Wood (84.9). Four elementary schools fell below the standard: Agnor (79.9), Scottsville (78.5), Greer (75.6) and Woodbrook (67.7).

Additionally, because of lower performance in particular federally identified student populations (economically disadvantaged students, English learners, students with disabilities and students of racial or ethnic identities), some schools had their Framework rating downgraded by one category. Specifically, the elementary schools Crozet (89.6), Stone-Robinson (86.4) and Mountain View (82.0) were downgraded from On Track to Off Track, and Agnor (79.9) and Greer (75.6) were downgraded from Off Track to Needs Intensive Support. Woodbrook was identified as needing “comprehensive support and improvement” due to low performance for the school as a whole. These designations create opportunities for state and federal funding to help address these targeted areas and critical learning needs.

“Students enter the school system with different levels of learning and experience. When we see disparities among groups of students, we must focus our efforts to accelerate their learning and improve their outcomes,” said Assistant Superintendent for Strategic Planning Dr. Patrick McLaughlin. “What is most promising is that once students enter the school system, we have a record of supporting their development, as evidenced by the strong performance of our middle schools and high schools across all feeder patterns.”

Because this is a new state performance-measuring system, ACPS says it is still learning what types of adjustments it needs to make. However, this new baseline measurement will allow the division to identify where it is seeing progress and where improvements need to be made. Based on the data released by the Virginia Department of Education, ACPS believes it is well-positioned as a leader in public education.

“ACPS has a strong foundation in place because of our unrelenting focus on the division’s strategic plan, Learning for All,” Dr. Haas stated. “This plan commits us to ending the predictive value of race, class, gender and special capacities in student achievement. There is certainly much work to be done to reach this goal, but as we look at the data released by the state, we are certainly on the right path.”

Looking ahead, ACPS says it will continue to focus on progress for students with disabilities, English learners, economically disadvantaged students, and students of color. This includes continued emphasis on consistent curriculum and assessments at the classroom level, expanding tutoring and intervention programs and intensifying family and community engagement. As part of its data-driven approach, ACPS will rely on this data and other critical findings to inform high-impact decision-making across classrooms and schools.