Where Does ACS Rank Academically?

One of the questions we are frequently asked in open houses, interviews, etc., is where we rank in the area of academics.  This is not an easy question to address in either a simple quantitative or qualitative way.  We have a few measures we can look at such as college acceptances, academic scholarship offers, GPA, SAT and ACT scores, etc.  In our academic world, however the most consistent and valid measure across the board seems to rest in the ranking of achievement test scores.

The most commonly used achievement test nationwide is the Stanford Achievement Test which is used by thousands of public, private, charter, Christian and home schools all across America.  The results of these tests are annually compiled and then ranked both on the state and national levels.  These rankings are done by the test publisher, Harcourt.  Our association, the North Carolina Christian School Association, publishes for our consideration a ranking of where our school stands individually as compared to other Christian schools in the state as well as where North Carolina Christian schools rank against all schools nationwide who take the Stanford test. I have recently received and read through the rankings from the 2012 Stanford Test taken by ACS students grades 1-11.  I am happy to make the following report:

1.  NCCSA schools ranked higher than all schools nationwide at every grade level.  The grade equivalency differences ranged anywhere from .75 grade levels higher all the way to 3.2 grade levels higher than the national average.

2.  The percentile rankings are even more revealing as NCCSA schools ranged from 13 to 44 percentage points higher than the national average.

3.  ACS ranks in the top 5% of Christian schools in North Carolina at 3 grade levels.
     ACS ranks in the top 10% of Christian schools in North Carolina at 5 grade levels.
     ACS ranks in the top 15% of Christian schools in North Carolina at 2 grade levels.

While this is only one of the measures we use to gauge academic success it is by far the most significant and should tell our parents they are getting a high quality academic product for the investment they are making in their children's Christian education.

This success is directly due to the faculty God has blessed us with at ACS.  They are the ones in the classroom everyday making sure the young people at ACS are achieving a high level.  Our faculty was paid a huge compliment at our regional educators convention in Myrtle Beach last week.  In a workshop of over 200 people one of the leading administrators in our state, a lady who was on the accreditation team that recently approved our re-accreditation said that ACS had one of the most talented and hard working faculties in the state.  This is borne out by the recent test results.

That said, we still have room to improve.  We need to work harder to catch up technologically.  We need to invest in cutting edge hardware that will keep our teachers on the front edge of academic progress.  To be standing still is to be moving backwards today. We need to be constantly re-evaluating ourselves and working to be the very best that we can be.  We are seeing good results but we are not ready to rest yet.  Providing quality Christian education is a commitment and as a faculty and staff we need to re-commit to that daily.  By God's grace we will.