Valdosta City Schools students demonstrated continued academic growth on the 2025–2026 Georgia Milestones assessments, with gains across mathematics, science and social studies and encouraging evidence that more students are progressing toward and reaching grade-level proficiency.
The percentage of students achieving Proficient Learner or above increased on 12 of 13 mathematics, science and social studies assessments, while the percentage performing at Developing Learner or above increased on 10 of 13 assessments.
The results reflect progress at multiple levels of student achievement. Proficient Learners demonstrate full mastery of grade-level standards, while Developing Learners demonstrate partial mastery and are progressing toward proficiency.
“We know we still have work to do, but these results show that work is producing results,” said Dr. Craig Lockhart, Superintendent of Valdosta City Schools.
“When we examine five-year trend data, Valdosta City Schools has demonstrated statistically significant gains in mathematics, science and social studies across 12 of the 13 tested subjects. U.S. History was the only subject in which there was no statistically significant difference. While we are not yet where we want to be, we are seeing definite progress and growth throughout the district. This is encouraging, as our students are demonstrating some of their strongest academic performance since the pandemic.”
Mathematics
Student performance increased at the Proficient Learner level or above on six of seven mathematics assessments.
Among the year-to-year gains:
Grade 3 increased 6.2 percentage points, from 22.9% to 29.1% Proficient Learner or above.
Grade 4 increased 2.8 percentage points, from 26.3% to 29.2%.
Grade 6 increased 2.7 percentage points, from 17.7% to 20.3%.
Grade 7 increased 1.3 percentage points, from 23.6% to 24.9%.
Grade 8 increased from 29.2% to 30.0%.
Growth was also evident among students progressing toward proficiency. At the Developing Learner level or above, Grades 3 through 7 all improved from the previous year, including gains of 3.8 percentage points in Grade 3, 3.6 points in Grade 5 and 3.2 points in Grade 6.
Algebra EOC results declined at both the Developing Learner and Proficient Learner levels. Strengthening Algebra achievement will remain an area of focus for Valdosta City Schools during the 2026–2027 school year.
Science
Science was an area of particularly strong and consistent growth, with student performance increasing on all four assessments at both Developing Learner or above and Proficient Learner or above.
At the Proficient Learner level or above:
Grade 5 Science increased from 26.5% to 28.2%.
Grade 8 Science increased from 6.5% to 12.9%, a gain of 6.4 percentage points.
Grade 8 students taking high school Physical Science increased 9.1 percentage points, from 60.5% to 69.6%.
Biology EOC increased 5.9 percentage points, from 29.4% to 35.2%.
Grade 8 students taking high school Physical Science demonstrated especially strong achievement, with nearly 70% scoring Proficient or Distinguished and 93.6% performing at Developing Learner or above.
Biology also continued to move in a positive direction, increasing 5.9 percentage points at Proficient Learner or above and 5.0 percentage points at Developing Learner or above.
Social Studies
Both social studies assessments showed increases in the percentage of students reaching Proficient Learner or above.
Grade 8 Social Studies increased from 23.3% to 25.7% Proficient Learner or above. At Developing Learner or above, student performance increased 5.4 percentage points, from 58.5% to 63.9%.
U.S. History EOC results reflected a shift in student performance. While the percentage of students at Developing Learner or above declined, the percentage reaching Proficient Learner or above increased 3.7 percentage points, from 29.2% to 32.9%.
Progress With Purpose
District leaders say the results provide reason to celebrate while also reinforcing the work that remains.
Valdosta City Schools will continue strengthening standards-aligned Tier 1 instruction, Professional Learning Communities, common assessments, data-driven instructional practices and targeted intervention and acceleration based on individual student needs.
At the same time, district leaders are calling on families and the community to partner with schools in addressing factors outside the classroom that can have a significant impact on student achievement, particularly attendance and student mobility.
“Stability is essential for students to perform well academically,” Lockhart said. “We must address two significant areas of concern: chronic absenteeism and high student mobility rates.”
Valdosta City Schools currently has a chronic absenteeism rate of 24.9%, compared to the state average of 17.7%. The district also ranks ninth among Georgia’s 180 school systems in student mobility, which occurs when students move from one school to another during the school year.
“We must ensure that our students attend school consistently and arrive ready to learn,” Lockhart said. “High mobility can negatively affect a student’s focus, security, comfort, confidence and ability to learn at high levels. We must continue working with our families and community partners to provide greater stability for our students so they can receive the best education possible.”
The district believes improving student achievement is a shared responsibility. Strong instruction and support within schools must be reinforced by consistent attendance, stability and a commitment to learning beyond the schoolhouse doors.
“Our students are showing us what they can do,” Lockhart said. “We have experienced positive academic gains over the past year, and we are determined to keep moving forward. Our theme this year is ‘NeVer, NeVer, NeVer Quit!’ We will not stop until all of our students are achieving at high levels.”
Vision, Values, Victory! GO CATS!
About Georgia Milestones
Students take Georgia Milestones End-of-Grade assessments in grades 3–8 and End-of-Course assessments in identified high school courses. Student performance is reported at four achievement levels: Beginning Learner, Developing Learner, Proficient Learner and Distinguished Learner.
Because the 2025–2026 school year marked the first administration of Georgia Milestones English Language Arts assessments aligned to Georgia’s new K–12 English Language Arts Standards, additional test-development activities must be completed by the Georgia Department of Education before ELA scores can be calculated and reported.
Valdosta City Schools will continue using Georgia Milestones results, along with multiple measures of student learning throughout the school year, to celebrate progress, identify areas for continued improvement and ensure high levels of learning for every student.