Salem Elementary School Honored As MA 'School Of Recognition'

SALEM, MA — Salem's Witchcraft Elementary School was one of three North Shore schools recognized as a "School of Distinction" for improved MCAS scores in the spring 2023 results.

The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education cited 66 schools statewide for strong academic achievement in the post-COVID-19 disruption assessment.

Witchcraft Heights received a criterion-referenced target percentage of 82 percent in data involving achievement, growth, high school completion, English language learning process, advanced coursework and attendance.

"In Salem, the decline in performance following the COVID-19 pandemic has generally halted and we are starting to see academic recovery," Superintendent Steve Zrike said. "While there has been important and critical progress, we still have extensive work to do to accelerate outcomes for our students."

Zrike said last week that the district's MCAS results will be discussed more thoroughly at the next School Committee meeting on Oct. 2.

The Superintendent's Office did release several metrics that showed improvement following the pandemic slippage.

• In grades 3-8, there was a two-point increase in both ELA and math MCAS achievement, as well as an overall increase in student growth in ELA and math.
• Six of eight schools made moderate progress towards improvement targets. Two schools — Bates Elementary School and Witchcraft Heights — met or exceeded their targets while Bentley Academy Innovation School and Carlton Innovation School made substantial progress. Collins Middle School and Salem High School made moderate progress.
• Five of eight schools improved their accountability percentile rank, including two by double digits — Bates and Witchcraft.

The other two North Shore schools honored as "Schools of Distinction" were Rockport Middle School and Lynn Woods Elementary School.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at [email protected]. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)