DENVER -- Schools across the state found out just how good or bad they're performing after the state released its second annual school accountability reports Thursday afternoon.

Forty-nine schools, including many that were reviewed for the first time, were rated unsatisfactory.

State officials said many of the failing schools were exempt last year because of disabled and transfer students, among other factors. They were included this year after lawmakers added a battery of new tests and restricted exemptions. Nine schools failed to improve.

About 70 percent of the schools that received unsatisfactory ratings last year improved, according to the report.

"We are seeing progress, especially among those schools that were identified a year ago as facing the most significant challenges," Gov. Bill Owens said. "These reports explode the tired old myth that high standards and accountability can't work for troubled schools."

Most of the newly listed unsatisfactory schools were smaller, reducing the number of students in unsatisfactory schools from 22,000 last year to 11,000 this year, said Rick O'Donnell, Owens' policy adviser.

"More schools are improving than declining, so we're headed in the right direction," he said.

Schools that continue to fail next year face the threat of sanctions that allow school boards to replace failing schools with charter schools if they do not improve within four years.

Owens gave 40 schools in Denver Public Schools a distinguished improvement award for demonstrating significant improvement from last spring.

He also commended DPS Superintendent Jerry Wartgow for focusing on student education and pulling a number of DPS schools out of the "unsatisfactory" ranks.

Wartgow said that the latest report cards demonstrate a "positive trend of improvement" that sets the stage for future growth in student achievement.

"These are major strides and they reflect the hard work of teachers, administrators, and students," said Wartgow. "It's more than ample proof that our goals are reachable. Many, many schools that maintained their same accountability rating were noted for significant improvement and this cannot be overlooked -- they are heading in the right direction. Their effort needs to be celebrated."

Last year, 30 schools earned the lowest grade of unsatisfactory -- 21 of those schools in DPS. This year, 14 of those schools improved to the "low" category.

DPS has five schools that were rated "excellent" -- two more than last year. They are Denver School of the Arts High School, Slavens, Bromwell, Southmoor and Crofton elementary schools.

There will be no money this year for state grants to help ailing schools. In the past two years, failing high schools could qualify for $125,000, middle schools $100,000 and elementary schools $75,000.

O'Donnell said the grants were not a major factor in schools that improved.

The ratings of excellent, high, average, low or unsatisfactory are based on how well students in third through eighth grade did on the Colorado Student Assessment Program exams. For high schools, ACT college admission results were also figured in to the rating.

Hard copies of the report cards are given to schools, which are responsible for sending them to parents.

How One School Turned It Around

Central Elementary in Commerce City used to be an example of a school in trouble.

Now, they are celebrating because the state says they've made "significant improvements."

Harriet Tubman and the underground railroad is the topic in Bodkin's fourth-grade class and the kids are interested, and asking questions.

It used to be different at Central, which used to get failing grades in literacy, attendance and discipline.

Here's how they turned it around. They took a teaching position and turned it into an intervention specialist.

"She deals primarily with kids who extra help with behavior and some plans that need to be in place for them," said Ronail Cerullo, a second-grade teacher.

Discipline problems went down and attendance went up. Next, they threw out the old notions of teaching and made learning a group effort among teachers, students and parents.

"We've had literacy night just before thanksgiving, teaching parents how to teach their kids to read," said Dolores Bodkin, a fourth-grade teacher.

There's a new culture of learning in this school, with an energized staff and that's contagious to students like Shuray Lopez.

"The teachers, they make learning fun and they like if you make it boring the kids aren't going to pay attention but that doesn't happen here," she said.

Additional Resource:

School Accountability Reports