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Standard & Poor's Report Languishes in Obscurity
They're getting as many grades as they're giving, but local public school districts are not sure if anyone is paying attention.
Among the first public school accountability measures to come on the scene was the evaluation service constructed by financial services company Standard & Poor's two years ago.
Under directives from former Gov. John Engler, the New York bond rating company designed and instituted a system where school district performance would be graded.
When S&P began its program, the company promised the most comprehensive examination of public schools in the country.
But even if it has succeeded, some are not sure how much impact the program is having.
"If people are finding information about the district from Standard & Poor's, we don't know about it," Birmingham Public Schools spokeswoman Shirley Bryant said. "I can't think of any calls I've received or that I've heard of anyone in the district getting regarding this."
The same holds true in neighboring Bloomfield Hills Public Schools, where school spokeswoman Jennifer Woliung said she has not fielded any calls related to the evaluation.
S&P was contracted to perform school evaluations by Engler in 2001 for a five-year period. The contract pays the company $12 million over the time period.
Statewide, S&P counts 1.4 million hits to its Internet school evaluation database.
"And among those we have isolated, 644,000 are parents," S&P spokesman David Wargin said.
Wargin said the number of hits the system receives on the Internet shows it is considered an essential informational tool by many in the state.
People visiting the S&P Web site at www.ses.standardandpoors.com will find a host of information about Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills school districts, including student performance data, spending figures and a return on investment section.
"At first we tried to correct data that we found to be in error," Bryant said. "But that wasn't met with a lot of success."
Wargin said the company is committed to providing correct information in its evaluations and offers that mistakes like those referred to by Bryant are likely a matter best addressed at the state education level.
Still, by its own explanation of measurements like the Performance Cost Index found on its Web site, some S&P measurements can be confusing.
S&P calculates things like per-pupil spending and test scores to develop its Performance Cost Index. Generally, the lower the score, the better the performance.
But, as the company warns, low scores are not always a good indicator of performance.
"When a low PCI is derived from low spending and low passing rates, the test results should not be thought of as a favorable return," the company's Web site cautions.
The PCI is expressed in dollars and Birmingham ranks above the state and county averages at $203.
Neighboring Bloomfield Hills ranks far lower than Birmingham and the state and county with $159.
S&P, like the other evaluation tools of No Child Left Behind and Education Yes!, uses results of the Michigan Educational Assessment Program test to gauge student performance.
But unlike those state and federally mandated programs, S&P also gauges school environment.
S&P lists the 21 assaults and eight drug-related incidents within Bloomfield Hills Public schools in 2002 and compares them to the average 32 and eight incidents, respectively, statewide to illustrate what going to school in the district is like.
S&P report languishes in obscurity
The Birmingham Eccentric
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http://www.hometownlife.net/birmingham/Default.asp?Section=&OnlineSection=&SectionPubDate=Thursday%2C+November+20%2C+2003&StoryID=5169&PageType=Other&
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