A recent school classification conducted by the Rhode Island Department of Education lists all of Barrington’s schools as either “leading” or “typical.”

None of the local schools reached the status of “commended” or dipped into the area of “priority, focused or warning.” A total of 24 schools from across Rhode Island were deemed commended.

“Our Accountability System, which the U.S. Department of Education approved last year, provides us with a snapshot that shows where our schools excel and where our schools need resources and support,” said Deborah A. Gist, commissioner of elementary and secondary education. “We have been working hard with our lowest-achieving schools — to help diagnose their challenges, identify needs, and take the necessary steps to turn around performance. So far, we have seen some examples of progress, and we expect the pace of improvement to advance dramatically in the coming years.” 

The classifications are based on the number of students in a school that attain the proficiency or proficient with distinction ranking on assessments, the participation rates on assessments, progress toward 2017 goals, graduation rate goals and more. There are 100 points a school can earn in the system. Barrington High School (72 points), Nayatt (73.50) and Sowams (75.71) all qualified as “leading.”

Commended schools must earn 77 points or more.

Barrington Middle School (68.83), Hampden Meadows School (67.50) and Primrose Hill (63) all fell into the “typical” classification.

Barrington schools held some of the highest marks in the category for percentage of students who were proficient or proficient with distinction. For example, while Blackstone Academy Charter School earned commended status, it scored 21 points out of possible 30 for the percentage of students who were proficient. Barrington High School (23 points), Barrington Middle School (23), Nayatt (24) and Sowams (27) all scored better in that area.

Also, Barrington Middle School, Hampden Meadows School and Nayatt all scored 5 out of 5 in the percentage of students who were proficient with distinction. Other schools scored higher in the area of closing subgroup gaps. Barrington High School scored a perfect 20 out of 20 in high school graduation rates.