New A-F grading system approved for Missouri schools, Joplin launches own ‘complete report card’
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Missouri schools are moving closer to receiving letter grades from the state, but the new system will first go through a pilot period.
The Missouri State Board of Education approved the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s A-F School and District Grading Framework this week.
The system was ordered by Gov. Mike Kehoe in January and will eventually assign public schools and districts an A, B, C, D or F.
Grades will be based on measures including academic achievement, student growth, progress toward proficiency, graduation rates and indicators of whether high school students are ready for college, careers or the military.
School leaders from Joplin, Monett and other Missouri districts urged the state to use a pilot year before publicly releasing grades.
They said districts need time to review calculations, verify data and correct potential errors.
Board members also questioned how poverty could affect school grades. DESE said its growth measures are designed to credit improvement regardless of a student’s economic background or where the student started academically.
DESE says the framework will be piloted before grades are publicly released, using 2024-25 school data.
Joplin Schools launched its own “Complete Report Card” this week, saying a single letter grade does not tell the full story of a school district.
The district’s online report card combines academic data with information on graduation rates, advanced and dual-credit courses, career and technical education, arts and athletics, special education, school safety and student and parent survey results.
Among the figures highlighted by Joplin Schools are a 97% graduation rate for the Class of 2026, 81 dual-credit, Advanced Placement and honors courses offered at Joplin High School, and survey results showing 85% of parents and staff reported overall satisfaction with the district.
District officials say the goal is to give families a broader look at student growth, opportunities and school culture alongside the state’s new A-F rating.
Officials say the A-F system will supplement Missouri’s existing school accountability system rather than replace it.
