In order to be eligible for the 2012 Academic Achievement Award, schools must meet all of the following criteria.
Schoolwide Program Eligibility
The school must have:
- Received Title I funds in both 2009–10 and 2010–11.
- At least 40 percent of students classified as socioeconomically disadvantaged (SED) in both 2009–10 and 2010–11.
Adequate Yearly Progress
The school must have:
- Made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in 2010 and 2011.
- Not been identified as Program Improvement in 2010–11.
- Not been identified as Program Improvement in 2011–12.
Academic Performance Index
The school must meet the following schoolwide Academic Performance Index (API) criteria:
- A 2011 Growth API score that was above the median score for the school's grade type:
- Elementary school above 810
- Middle school at or above 782
- High school at or above 748
- Elementary school above 810
- Met their schoolwide API target and the API targets for all numerically significant subgroups in both 2009–10 and 2010–11, and in both years:
- Schools with a schoolwide Growth API greater than or equal to 800 could not have their API score decline.
- Schools with a schoolwide Growth API less than 800 must have doubled their schoolwide target.
- Schools with a schoolwide Growth API greater than or equal to 800 could not have their API score decline.
In addition to the schoolwide API criteria, a school must also meet the following API criteria for their numerically significant SED subgroup in both 2009–10 and 2010–11:
- Schools with a SED Growth API greater than or equal to 800 could not have their SED score decline.
- Schools with a SED Growth API less than 800 must have doubled their SED target.
Testing Irregularities
- Schools cannot have any reported testing irregularities in 2009–10 and 2010–11.
- Schools cannot have any API flags in 2009–10 and 2010–11.