State report slams Muncie Central

MUNCIE, Ind. (WISH) - The Indiana Department of Education slammed Muncie Central High School in a School Quality Review saying the school’s overall performance was “Unacceptable”

“Muncie Central is a building that is managed, not led. Discipline issues control the school day, set the tone and culture of the school, and handicap the office staff,” the report reads.

The School Quality Report, a state requirement for schools in their fourth year of probationary status, was written following an evaluation by IDOE officials and community members in early December. It is based on a rubric created for a high poverty, high performance school.

The report found that “Traditional classes are not meeting student needs,” and “the percentage of suspensions is almost three times the state average indicating that discipline is a significant issue for the school.”

Muncie Central High School made headlines back in November when Muncie Police accused the school of failing to report a rape that happened on campus during school hours.

The School Quality Report identified the following areas of strength:
1. Muncie Central has a long standing history of excellence and pride in the community and stakeholders want to see the school return to that status and are deeply interested in investing in those efforts. A number of teachers are a part of these stakeholders and are ready to take advantage of opportunities for real change.
2. Students at the school are extremely polite, eager to engage, and articulate. While they have great pride in their school and student body, they are honest about the school's shortcomings and want to be a part of the solution.
3. The school's physical facilities are well-maintained and attractive.

The report outlined the following, listing them as areas to improve: 
1. Instruction: Increase the rigor, design, and quality of instruction in classrooms by making classroom visits the singular priority of administrative staff.
a. Establish practices for holding teachers accountable for improving instruction and learning through rigorous monitoring of evidence of student achievement and regular evaluation of teaching effectiveness against agreed targets for improvement.
b. Place focus on raising expectations for student work and achievement.
c. Place particular focus on classes with underperforming students (LAB classes), and specifically having the most effective teachers lead the planning, design, and instruction of those students.

2. Discipline: Redesign school discipline policies to enable teachers and administrators to adequately enforce rules and implement meaningful consequences in order to build a culture of accountability and pride.

3. Teacher Empowerment: Expand the opportunities for distributed leadership and collaborative decision-making to enlist a range of staff in contributing to the school's development.

4. Community engagement:
a. Establish systematic practices for reaching at-risk students and their families and supporting them with resources, and then regularly evaluate the effectiveness of this system.
b. Create and implement a long-term plan for building and sustaining community partnerships that focus on student support and academic success.