These 4 underperforming Macon area schools no longer need extra support from the state
Four schools in the Macon area have improved their academic performance enough to no longer be required to receive additional support from the Georgia Department of Education.
Veterans Elementary School and VIP Academy in Bibb County, as well as Crawford County Elementary School and Twiggs Middle School, are among the state’s 86 schools on what the Department of Education calls its Exit List.
The federal Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 mandates that states give additional support to their lowest-performing 5% of schools receiving Title I funding. As part of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title I provides extra money to schools with at least 40% of their students coming from families with household income below the poverty level, which in 2024 is $31,200 for a four-member household.
The education department identifies such schools in three categories: Comprehensive Support & Improvement (CSI), Targeted Support & Improvement (TSI), and Additional Targeted Support & Improvement (ATSI).
This current school year, Bibb County has eight of the state’s 107 CSI schools: Appling Middle School and Bernd, Bruce, Hartley, Ingram/Pye, Rosa Taylor, Union and Williams elementary schools. Hunt Elementary School in Peach County also is on this list.
Bibb also has one of the state’s 75 ATSI schools: Westside High School. No school in the Macon area is among the state’s three TSI schools.
What the classifications mean
The U.S. Department of Education approved the state education department’s request in 2023 to redefine its support categories.
CSI schools are among the lowest-performing 5% of Title I schools, or any high school with a graduation rate below 68% or any school identified as an ATSI school because of the same student demographic for six years.
TSI schools are any school with one or more consistently underperforming subgroup. They are identified annually.
ATSI schools are any school meeting the TSI criteria and having a struggling student demographic that, on its own, would qualify as a CSI school. They are identified every three years.
CSI schools are assigned specialists who provide on-site coaching and support, working with school leadership teams to analyze their practices, develop a plan for school improvement and implement that plan.
GaDOE’s school improvement team works with each CSI school to put interventions in place, such as updating instructional practices, providing teacher training and leadership support, and putting community services in place to meet nonacademic needs that affect students’ ability to learn. These services can include:
▪ Access to donated food and clothes
▪ Mental health counseling
▪ Tutoring and academic support
▪ Workshops on college applications, resumes and interview skills
▪ Assistance with job opportunities.
TSI schools receive support at the district level. GaDOE staff members collaborate with the district to plan the support for these schools. They also meet with district officials to monitor the plan’s implementation and provide professional learning and resources for these schools as needed.
