Newark, MD, March 9, 2023– The Maryland State Department of Education released its first update since 2019 to the Maryland Report Card website today, containing performance data for every school in the State, including ten schools in Worcester County.

In Worcester County, ninety percent of eligible schools earned a rating of four or five stars. For comparison, only 48% of all school types in Maryland reached four- or five-star status. Worcester’s concentration of four- and five-star schools is the third highest in the state, following Garrett and Queen Anne’s counties respectively.

In this year’s data release, Ocean City Elementary School’s rating increased from four- to five-star status, and Showell Elementary School, which was previously not eligible for stars, joins Buckingham Elementary at the four-star level. All middle schools across the county reached four-star status, as well as both Pocomoke and Snow Hill High Schools. Stephen Decatur High School also fell just 0.7 percentage points shy from reaching four-star status.

The full breakdown of the ten schools eligible to receive star ratings in Worcester County ratings is below.

SCHOOL	Points Earned	Total Possible Points	Total Earned Percent	Star Rating
Berlin Intermediate School	55.2	90	61.3%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Buckingham Elementary School	52.32	73	71.7%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Ocean City Elementary School	60.21	73	82.5%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Pocomoke High School	56.92	90	63.2%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Pocomoke Middle School	125.2	176.5	66.2%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Showell Elementary School	44.50	63	70.6%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Snow Hill High School	61.86	90	68.7%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Snow Hill Middle School	110.7	176.5	62.7%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Stephen Decatur High School	59.29	100	59.3%	⭐️⭐️⭐️
Stephen Decatur Middle School	61.6	86.5	71.2%	⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

To receive a star rating, a school must have 45 or more possible points. Some schools may not have possible points for every measure or indicator. In Worcester County, Pocomoke Elementary and Snow Hill Elementary Schools did not reach this possible point threshold, which is why the schools were not issued a star rating. Additionally, Worcester Technical High School and Cedar Chapel Special Schools do not meet the qualifications for a star rating.

Star Ratings Graphic - Credit - MSDE These scores reflect school performance on multiple components. For elementary and middle schools, the system includes academic achievement, academic progress, progress in achieving English language proficiency, and measures of school quality and student success. For high schools, the system includes academic achievement, graduation rate, progress in English language proficiency, readiness for postsecondary success, and measures of school quality and student success. All schools’ calculations incorporate school composite scores on a statewide School Survey, which is based on input related to safety, community, environment, and relationships.

“I am very proud to report that our schools continue to perform well in Maryland’s accountability system,” said Superintendent of Schools Louis H. Taylor. “This report card release is the first since before the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is clear that while we certainly have much to celebrate, there is a lot of work ahead of us.”

Maryland introduced School Report Cards in 2018 for students, parents, educators and community members could better understand how their schools are performing, just as report cards help parents understand how their kids are doing. The goal of the School Report Card is to bring together school data in an easy-to-understand and usable format to help us ask questions, find answers, make decisions, and act.

The School Report Cards can be found on the Maryland Report Card website, as well as more information and data about schools and districts. This information can be found at: MdReportCard.org. An update on the latest release of the Maryland School Report Card was made to the State Board of Education on February 28. The presentation materials for the meeting, which provide statewide context to Worcester County’s performance, can be found at https://marylandpublicschools.org/stateboard/Pages/meeting-agendas/2023/2023-02-28.aspx.

STEPHEN DECATUR HIGH SCHOOL

Worcester Schools Shine in Latest Maryland School Report Card