Even by its high standards, the improvement in performance scores by the St. Tammany Parish public school system was significant. For the fifth consecutive year, the district increased its score and did so in grand style, becoming one of just seven school districts in the state given a grade of A, according to statewide scores released Monday by the Louisiana Department of Education.

Overall, its score jumped 10.3 percent to 122.8, and 10 of its 54 schools increased its score by a full letter grade.

“I called the 10 schools and thanked them for their effort,” said Superintendent Trey Folse. “It’s a tough job right now being a public school principal. We’re going to be going to each one of those schools and personally thanking the faculty.”

“I called the 10 schools and thanked them for their effort,” said Superintendent Trey Folse. “It’s a tough job right now being a public school principal. We’re going to be going to each one of those schools and personally thanking the faculty.”

Sixty percent of the district’s schools received an A or B, including 15 earning an A – up from 12 in 2011-12. There were no failing schools in the district for the second consecutive year, and only three schools – or 5.5 percent – received a D.

As has been the case the past several years, St. Tammany continued to outperform all other large districts in state of 20,000 or more students. In fact, the five districts ranked ahead of it have 11,000 fewer combined students than does St. Tammany.

Mandeville High, which was ranked 14th overall of the state’s 1,302 schools, earned the district’s best overall score with a 155.7, moving past Pontchartrain Elementary, also in Mandeville, which had held the honor three consecutive years. Fontainebleau High near Mandeville was 21st overall in the state with a score of 149.9, and two others – Northshore High (33rd) near Slidell and Pontchartrain (34th) – ranked in the top 50. Four other schools – Tchefuncte Middle (66th), Lakeshore High (75th), Slidell High (79th) and Magnolia Trace Elementary (99th) finished in the top 100.

“We’re really excited, and this is representative of a lot of hard work by a lot of people,” Folse said. “This starts with our students and their families, and then the teachers and the school administrators. … We’ve been talking about team work for a few years now, and I think today is a great example of what it means to be part of Team St. Tammany.”

Fontainebleau experienced the most significant baseline performance score increase in the district, going from 127.6 to 149.9, and Lakeshore was second, jumping from 108 to 129.1.

All but two schools earned a better grade this year than last, and only one – Chahta-Ima Elementary School in Lacombe – saw a significant decline in its overall score, going from a C to a D. “We’ve already been in there and have been working with them” even before the scores were released, said Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Cheryl Arabie. Chahta-Ima, Alton Elementary and Brock Elementary, both in Slidell, were the only schools to receive a D.

“We always provide additional support to the schools that may have taken a little dip,” Arabie said.

The greatest improvement came in the district came in its high schools, where all eight either received an A, improved from last year’s score or both.

“We had so much growth, and we’re going to celebrate that today,” Folse said. “… We’re already working on our plan for next year.”

Three new schools received grades for the first time. Joseph Lancaster Elementary in Madisonville earned an A, while Henry Mayfield Elementary near Slidell and Abney Early Childhood Development Center in Slidell each received a C.

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