Schools in the Heart of Virginia that for the 2017-18 school year were given the accreditation status of “To Be Determined,” from the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) in September have received their final status for the school year. According to a Nov. 2 VDOE press release, the department approved appeals from 58 schools and granted each a rating of “Partially Accredited: Reconstituted School” for the 2017-18 school year. Among the Schools were Cumberland County Middle School (CCMS), Prince Edward County Elementary School (PECES) and Prince Edward County Middle School (PECMS).

“A reconstituted school reverts to accreditation-denied status if it fails to meet full accreditation requirements within the agreed-upon term, or if it fails to have its annual application for Partially Accredited-Reconstituted School renewed,” VDOE officials cited on the department’s website.

Both federal and VDOE ratings are primarily based on Standards of Learning (SOL) tests administered in the 2016-17 school year. According to VDOE officials, requirements to earn full accreditation include students must achieve adjusted pass rates of at least 75 percent in English and at least 70 percent on assessments in mathematics, science and history.

“We are pleased that Cumberland Middle School has received partial accreditation,” said Cumberland County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Amy Griffin. “We will continue our focus on building positive relationships, aligning instruction and student engagement.”

Griffin said the division will continue to work collaboratively with the VDOE in the school improvement process. Last year CCMS was rated as “Partially

Accredited: Reconstituted.”

This year, the school received the partial accreditation for failing to meet English, mathematics and science benchmarks.

“We appreciate the fact that the state has recognized our efforts to improve instruction by granting our appeal request,” said Dr. Barbara Johnson, the Prince Edward County Public Schools superintendent. “Further, as we continue to focus on our lesson planning and delivery, we are confident that our test scores will increase.”

Last year, PECES was listed as “Partially Accredited: Reconstituted,” PECMS was listed as “Partially Accredited: Warned School-Pass Rate”