All 10 schools in the Danville Public Schools system are fully accredited for the first time in more than a decade, according to accreditation results released by the Virginia Department of Education this week. Eight of those 10 are meeting or exceeding state expectations, according to the department.
This achievement is part of a larger momentum in the Danville school district, which is working to bounce back from declines in student performance, test scores and accreditation in the 2000s and 2010s.
“No single test or report card shows the full story of our students’ learning, per the VDOE,” said a Wednesday release from the school system. “That’s why Virginia now uses multiple measures, not just test scores, to understand how schools are helping students grow, meet expectations, and prepare for the future.”
The Danville school system entered into a corrective action plan with the Education Department in 2020 after a majority of its schools lost accreditation. During the 2019-2020 school year, nine out of 11 schools in the district were not fully accredited.
Accreditation has increased under the Education Department support plan, which will remain in place until all schools are accredited for at least two years.
The 2024-2025 academic year was the first time in a decade that five of Danville’s schools were accredited at the same time.
Since 2011, it has been challenging for all city schools to achieve full accreditation simultaneously, Superintendent Angela Hairston noted in the release.
“Today, we are proud to report that every school in Danville Public Schools is now fully accredited,” the release said.
The Education Department revised its accreditation criteria this year, moving away from a heavy emphasis on student performance through the Standards of Learning tests and chronic absenteeism data, according to the release.
Instead, a new accreditation structure focuses more on student progress and outcomes “to show how schools are doing overall and where they can improve,” says the release.
The 2025-2026 school year is the first under this new framework, which was approved by the Virginia Board of Education in January. Schools are now placed in one of four categories: Distinguished, On Track, Off Track or Needs Intensive Support. A school can receive a performance score of Off Track or Needs Intensive Support but still meet the Operational Standards of Accreditation.
Galileo Magnet High School in Danville received the Distinguished designation.
Seven schools — Forest Hills Elementary, George Washington High, O.T. Bonner Middle, Park Avenue Elementary, Schoolfield Elementary, Westwood Middle and Woodberry Hills Elementary — received the On Track designation.
Arnett Hills Elementary, which opened this fall, will receive its rating after the 2025-2026 school year.
E.A. Gibson Elementary received the Off Track designation and R.I.S.E. Academy was designated as Needs Intensive Support.
Though most of the schools in the city are meeting or exceeding state expectations, the school system is “doubling down on key initiatives” to build on this success, according to the release.
“This is not the finish line. It is a launching pad for even greater success,” Hairston said in the release.
Those efforts include a division-wide literacy initiative; deepened support in math, science and history; expanded leader and teacher development; a focus on attendance, school choice and family initiatives; and other goals, says the release.
“This recognition is a powerful reminder that sustained focus, high expectations, and collective effort leads to measurable results,” Hairston said. “For years, we have been working to change the trajectory of student achievement in Danville, and now the state is confirming what we already know, our schools are on the rise.”
