Hampton City Schools Achieves 100% Full Accreditation and 100% of Schools Meet or Exceed State Accountability Performance Benchmark 

21 HCS schools earn Distinguished designation (the highest designation), up from six last year; all four high schools score above 100 points

Hampton City Schools continues to demonstrate strong academic performance, with all 29 schools earning full accreditation and all 29 schools scoring 80 points or higher under Virginia's School Performance and Support Framework (SPSF), prior to the application of federal indicators.

This marks the second year Virginia has implemented the SPSF, the state's accountability model designed to provide a broader picture of school performance by measuring student mastery, academic growth, readiness, and graduation. 

Schools are categorized based on their overall SPSF scores as:

• Distinguished: 90 points or higher
• Meets Expectations (previously titled On Track): 80–89 points
• Approaching Expectations (previously titled Off Track): 65–79 points
• Needs Intensive Support: Below 65 points

100% of HCS Schools Fully Accredited

For the second consecutive year under Virginia's revised accreditation system, 100% of Hampton City Schools — 29 out of 29 schools — are Fully Accredited.

Under Virginia's current system, accreditation and accountability are separate measures. Accreditation focuses on whether schools demonstrate compliance with the operational and structural requirements established in Virginia's Standards of Accreditation. A Fully Accredited school has submitted all required evidence to VDOE, with that evidence determined to be satisfactory and compliant. 

100% Meet or Exceed State Accountability Performance Benchmark

HCS also saw significant gains under the state's accountability framework. All 29 HCS schools — 100% — earned an SPSF score of 80 or higher, placing every school in either the Distinguished or Meets Expectations category, before the application of federal indicators.

Even more notably, 21 of HCS' 29 schools earned Distinguished status with scores of 90 or higher, compared with six schools last year, with all four HCS high schools earning scores above 100 points.

Superintendent Dr. Raymond L. Haynes shares, "These results reflect the intentional work happening every day across Hampton City Schools. To have every school fully accredited, every school meet or exceed the state's 80-point accountability benchmark, and 21 of our 29 schools earn Distinguished status is something our entire HCS community should be proud of and celebrate.”

"These results are about much more than a score or designation. They represent the collective efforts of our students, teachers, administrators, staff, families, School Board and community partners. We remain focused on continuous improvement and ensuring every student has access to the instruction, experiences, and support needed to be successful in college, careers and life. As One Community, One Transformation, we will continue pursuing Excellence with Intentionality for every child, every day, whatever it takes."

In addition to Virginia's state accountability categories, the SPSF incorporates federally required accountability indicators under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). These federal measures are used to identify schools for additional support, including Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI).

TSI identification focuses on the performance of individual student groups. Schools may be identified when the performance of an individual student group falls below the applicable threshold and meets the additional federal identification criteria.

Because those thresholds are recalculated, the comparison point can change from year to year. As the performance used to establish the threshold increases, the benchmark that individual student groups must meet also becomes more rigorous.

For fall 2026, Asbury Elementary, Burbank Elementary, Mary T. Christian Elementary, Forrest Elementary, and Smith Elementary were identified for Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI) based on the performance of their students with disabilities subgroup. These schools will develop targeted corrective action plans to improve outcomes for this student group. Kecoughtan High School currently holds a TSI designation, which is under review for possible removal.

It is important to note that TSI identification does not indicate that a school failed to meet Virginia’s overall SPSF benchmark. All six schools earned an overall framework score of at least 80 points before federal indicators were applied, and each remains Fully Accredited.