It has been six years since the U.S. Department of Education last awarded CCSD with a Magnet Schools Assistance Program grant.
Why it matters: The $15 million federal grant in 2017 aided the transformation of an elementary school (Roger D. Gehring Academy of Science and Technology) and two middle schools (Mike O’Callaghan i3 Learn Academy and the Lied STEM Academy) into magnet schools.
- These three schools have made considerable academic progress since the grant. Notably, all three schools received 5-star ratings – the state’s top designation – from the Nevada Department of Education in its annual report issued in September.
? By the numbers: O’Callaghan Academy, as an example, made dramatic gains from the 2017-2018 to 2022-2023 school years, demonstrated by state academic proficiency tests:
- In math, prior to becoming a magnet school, proficiency rates were 23 percentage points below the state average, but five years later they were 8 percentage points above the state average.
- In English Language Arts, during the same period, proficiency rates were 7 percentage points below the state average, but five years later were 13 percentage points above the state average.
