08/13/2026
State of the Schools: ACPS Reports Continued Academic Progress, Stronger School Climate, and Organizational Growth
ACCOMAC, Va. — August 11, 2026 — Accomack County Public Schools (ACPS) is entering the 2026/2027 school year with a continued focus on academic achievement and evidence of progress across several measures of division performance. Academic results, workforce indicators, school climate data, and fiscal accountability measures collectively demonstrate that the school division continues to strengthen while maintaining a clear focus on areas where additional growth is needed.
At the center of that progress is student achievement.
🔹Academic Achievement Remains the Division's Central Focus
During the 2025/2026 school year, ACPS maintained a focus on improving student outcomes through greater instructional alignment, increased accountability, data informed decision making, and consistent expectations for teaching and learning.
Virginia School Quality Profile (VSQP) data, published by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE), documents the division's academic performance over time and provides an important benchmark for measuring progress. The VSQP profile reports annual pass rates for state assessments across grade levels and content areas, allowing ACPS to examine not only overall achievement but also performance by individual assessments and student groups.
Preliminary 2025/2026 accountability results indicate that the division's academic trajectory is showing positive growth from previous years. The August 6, 2026, report shows improvement across measures within Virginia's School Performance and Support Framework, including mastery, growth, readiness, graduation, and overall framework performance.
Of particular importance, the results show widespread improvement in student growth, an indicator of meaningful academic progress regardless of the students’ starting point. The data also demonstrate improvements in readiness measures and overall framework scores across the division.
“These results represent the work of all staff and students in collaboration with parents and community, but they also reinforce the importance of maintaining our focus,” said Dr. Gennifer Miller, Superintendent of Accomack County Public Schools. “Academic achievement must remain at the center of every decision we make. We have strengthened expectations, increased our attention to instructional data, and asked our schools to remain focused on measurable student outcomes. We are seeing evidence that this work is making a difference.” Miller emphasized that the division's progress is particularly significant because ACPS is evaluating success not only by a single year's test scores, but by the direction of performance over time.
“Our responsibility is not to chase one good year of results,” Dr. Miller said. “Our responsibility is to create sustained improvement. We want to see students' academic performance improving year after year. That is what Raising the Standard means academically.”
🔹School Climate Improves Alongside Academic Performance
The division's academic progress is accompanied by encouraging evidence of a positive and improving culture and climate across ACPS. Results from the 2026 Virginia School Survey of Climate and Working Conditions, which is administered anonymously through a third party (DCJS/VDOE), demonstrate improvements in perceptions among students, classroom instructors, and staff, with ACPS meeting or exceeding regional and state results on the measures administered.
Students' ratings of their school's atmosphere increased from 3.6 in 2025 to 3.9 in 2026. The 2026 ACPS score exceeded the regional score of 3.6 and matched the state score of 3.9. Among classroom instructors, the rating of whether their school is a good place to work and learn increased from 4.9 to 5.4, placing ACPS above both the regional and state scores of 4.8. Staff ratings on the same measure also increased, moving from 5.1 to 5.3, compared with regional and state scores of 5.0.
“The improvement reflected in the state survey is an important measure of the health of our school division,” said Dr. Miller. “We have worked intentionally to strengthen the culture of ACPS and to create schools where both students and employees feel supported and empowered about their learning and work environment. Seeing increases in all three groups, while also meeting or exceeding regional and state results, demonstrates that this work is having a positive impact.”
The improvement in the state survey data also provides evidence that employee morale and perceptions of the work environment are stronger this year than last. These gains are particularly meaningful during a period in which ACPS has implemented significant change and strengthened expectations for accountability throughout the division. Change is not always easy, and increased accountability can be challenging. Over the past year, ACPS has worked to ensure that employees throughout the organization understand that student academic achievement must remain the central focus of the division’s work. As expectations have increased, the division has also experienced natural workforce transitions as ACPS continues building a team aligned with the division’s direction, expectations for accountability, and commitment to student achievement. The improvement in the state survey results suggests that, even during this period of change, the division is resilient and building a stronger culture among the employees who continue this work.
“Meaningful improvement requires change, and change requires accountability,” said Dr. Gennifer Miller, Superintendent of Accomack County Public Schools. “We have been clear that our decisions must begin with what is best for students and what will improve academic achievement. Not everyone will be comfortable with higher expectations, but our responsibility is to our students and communities. What is especially encouraging is that, while we have raised expectations, our state survey results show that employees report a more positive work environment. That tells us that accountability and positive culture can exist together.”
These improvements in employee morale are reflected in objective data from both the Virginia School Survey of Climate and Working Conditions and ACPS exit interviews, providing measurable evidence of the division’s improving culture and offering a broader perspective beyond individual experiences or concerns.
🔹Recruitment of Qualified Personnel Strengthens
ACPS also increased its recruitment of personnel during the 2025/2026 school year. The division recorded 476 hires, compared with 436 in 2024/2025 and 318 in 2023/2024.
Equally important is the division's progress in ensuring instructional personnel are appropriately qualified for their assignments. ACPS's iPALS alignment increased from 79% to 92%. iPALS is Virginia's system for examining instructional personnel and licensure alignment, including whether educators hold the appropriate credentials and endorsements for their assignments.
The 13% increase in the iPals score represents substantial progress toward ensuring students are taught by appropriately licensed and endorsed personnel. This score also placed ACPS among the top in the state for qualified personnel teaching in their endorsed area.
Workforce data also provides context for employee transitions. ACPS recorded 95 resignations and 15 retirements in 2022/2023; 116 resignations and 19 retirements in 2023/2024; 80 resignations and 22 retirements in 2024/2025; and 114 resignations and 28 retirements in 2025/2026. Additionally, when reviewing current open positions relative to previous years, ACPS is in a much stronger position as we move into the new school year.
Exit interviews completed by employees leaving the division during the 2025/2026 school year showed that 77% provided positive feedback about their time with Accomack County Public Schools.
🔹Fiscal Accountability Supports the Division's Work
The division's progress also extends to its financial operations. ACPS's annual audit was completed on time with no findings, reflecting the division's continued emphasis on sound financial management, internal controls, and responsible stewardship of public funds.
Strong financial operations enable the division to direct resources toward instruction, personnel, facilities, and the services necessary for student achievement.
🔹Raising the Standard
The state of Accomack County Public Schools reflects a division marked by measurable progress and a clear understanding that continued improvement requires sustained effort. Academic achievement remains the primary measure of that work, supported by stronger workforce alignment, improving school climate, and responsible financial management.
“We have made progress, and the data give us reason to be proud of the work occurring throughout ACPS,” Miller said. “But Raising the Standard means that yesterday's improvement becomes tomorrow's expectation. We are not finished. We will continue strengthening instruction and supporting our employees so that every student in Accomack County has the opportunity to achieve at a higher level.”
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https://www.accomack.k12.va.us/apps/news/show_news.jsp?REC_ID=1025389&id=0
