WCSD Celebrating Impressive Gains in English and Math Proficiency, Decrease in Chronic Absenteeism

The Washoe County School District (WCSD) is celebrating an historic academic achievement with the single largest one-year increase in English Language Arts (ELA) and Math scores in the Smarter Balanced Assessment test since the 2015-16 school year.

In ELA, the district posted a 3.4 percentage point gain in proficiency from the 2023-24 school year. In Math, the district posted a 2.7 percentage point gain in proficiency over the same period.

“Proficiency is so important,” said WCSD Superintendent Joe Ernst. “When a student demonstrates proficiency and grade level standards, it’s an indication of progress they’ll have going forward. And they are not just proficient or meeting standards: these students are exceeding standards! When you achieve these proficiency levels, you’re more likely to have success in school and you are more likely to attend school every day.”

WCSD also launched innovative programs to combat chronic absenteeism rates that soared during the pandemic and have long-term detrimental effects on a student’s education. Chronic absenteeism is defined as a student missing 10 percent or more of the school year.

Some of these programs included: a dramatic increase in the number of athletic programs, clubs, and activities for students; Student Advisory Councils established at all middle- and high schools; expanded systems of tracking data to drive individual interventions; and community partnerships to increase awareness, including the “Good Things Happen When You Show Up” campaign with PBS Reno.

In addition, The Reno + Sparks Chamber of Commerce supports the "Attendance Matters" campaign, a partnership between The Chamber, United Way of Northern Nevada and the Sierra, and Strengthen Our Community, a nonprofit group whose overall mission is to raise awareness about barriers to opportunity and bring partners together to identify and implement solutions.  

As a result of these efforts, 71 percent of WCSD schools recorded a decrease in habitual absences among students.

“When chronic absenteeism decreases, it means more kids are coming to class every day,” said Superintendent Ernst. “When more kids come to class, the better they’re learning, and the more success they achieve. We want to make sure our instruction is improving and that we’re working in close partnership with our families. When teachers, schools, and families are working together, we can find specific ways to support the child, and they can benefit from that.”

While the district celebrates these milestones, Superintendent Ernst says the district is committed to continuing its work on behalf of children in the Washoe County School District.

“I would say there’s a lot to be proud of,” he said. “We’re definitely proud of these historic gains in proficiency levels, and we recognize there’s still plenty of work still to do. We embrace continuous improvement. We’re going to keep working to get better for the benefit of our students, and we’re excited to build on the momentum going forward into this year.”