State data shows improving Hannibal school test scores

HANNIBAL, Mo. — At Wednesday’s Hannibal school board meeting, Stowell Elementary Principal and District Curriculum Coordinator Corey Bennett presented the data from the latest Missouri School Improvement Program assessment, the process for accrediting public school districts in Missouri. 

The Hannibal School District posted its highest score to date in the current cycle  — MSIP 6  — which began with in 2022. On the 2024 annual performance review, Hannibal scored an 80 percent, an increase from 75.8 percent in 2022 and 75.6 percent in 2023.

“The big increase there as far as we can tell is split between performance and continuous improvement,” Bennett said. “A lot of our growth this time came from performance scores (how the students perform on the end-of-the-year assessments).”

The district’s 80 percent score easily cleared the 70 percent benchmark for accredidation.

“We knew we would be accredited, but it’s nice to know that we’re well above the benchmark to be accredited,” district superintendent Susan Johnson said. “It’s nice to be able to get that feedback and share it with teachers and our students so they know the hard work they’re putting in is paying off.”

Missouri’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) breaks down performance scores into how many students reach high achievement marks and individual students who improved on their score. These metrics combine for 70 percent of the overall score.

“We improved as a district because we have seen improvement in our testing in particular,” Bennett said.

An example of this improvement came at Oakwood Elementary, where students bumped their proficient and advanced scores from 68 percent to 91 percent in fourth grade English. Another example could be seen at Stowell, where just nine percent of students tested at a below basic level compared to 15 percent last year.

“We’re really increasing the amount of kids that achieve and reducing the number of kids who don’t achieve as high,” Bennett said.

At Stowell, 90 percent of students scored proficient or advanced and no students scored below basic on Algebra 2.

“Huge shoutout to that group and those teachers,” Bennett said. “Math has always been a strength for us as a district, but the big thing to note in all this is English has started to clip up, particularly in our elementary schools.”

The district will go under review again in the 2026-27 school year, during which the district will have to share its curriculum to make sure it is aligned with state standards and up to date as well as its Comprehensive School Improvement Plan, among other things.

“We’ll have this upcoming year to prepare for that, make sure all our t’s are crossed and i’s are dotted and that we are providing the information we need for our kids,” Johnson said.

Johnson plans to retire from her superintendent role at the end of the 2024-25 school year, so she recommends reinstating the assistant superintendent for curriculum instruction position to help take some of the stress off of the new superintendent during that review process.

“Student achievement is the most important, but with the MSIP 6, there is a lot of work that needs to be done to be able to not just maintain but also continue to improve those areas,” Johnson said. “It’s not something you can just do overnight. With having a new superintendent — although I know they’ll do great, whoever that is — I just know that’s a lot to put on someone. I think (the assistant superintendent for curriculum instruction position) is something that, moving forward, needs to be taken into consideration.”