For the first time since Ohio adopted its star‑rating system, Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) have met the state’s education standards. The Ohio Department of Education released the 2025‑2026 report cards on Tuesday, assigning CPS a 3‑star overall rating, up from 2.5 stars the previous year.
Superintendent highlights progress
Superintendent Shauna Murphy previewed the results at a recent school board meeting, emphasizing the significance of the improvement. “This is really important to all of us. It’s something that we’ve been talking about and working on,” Murphy said.
How CPS scored
The star system evaluates districts on six factors. This year CPS received the following scores:
- Achievement: 2 stars
- Progress: 4 stars
- Gap closing: 3 stars
- Graduation: 1 star
- Early literacy: 2 stars
- College, Career, Workforce, Military Readiness: 3 stars
With 33,458 students enrolled across 67 schools, CPS posted a four‑year graduation rate of 80.6 percent.
Top‑performing schools
Four CPS schools earned the highest possible rating of 5 stars: Bramble School, Kilgour School, Spencer Center for Gifted and Exceptional Students, and Walnut Hills High School. Hyde Park School received a 4.5‑star rating, while Fairview‑Clifton German Language School and Sands Montessori School each earned 4 stars.
No CPS school received a 1‑star rating. However, Shroder Middle School and Virtual High School each received a 1.5‑star rating.
Next steps
CPS leaders will hold a follow‑up meeting later Tuesday to discuss the report card findings in more detail and outline plans for continued improvement.
The full Ohio report card results are available on the Ohio Department of Education website.
Original reporting: WLWT Cincinnati — read the source article.
