Celebrating Growth and Embracing the Work Ahead
A Message from Superintendent Jeremy Batchelor
Youngstown City School District
As we prepare for another exciting school year in the Youngstown City School District, I want to take a moment to share encouraging news and a clear direction forward for our academic work.
Recent state assessment results show that YCSD is making meaningful progress. Across multiple content areas and grade levels, our scholars demonstrated increased proficiency—proof that our district-wide commitment to academic excellence is making a difference.
Bright Spots in the Data
Several key areas saw strong improvements in student proficiency from the 2023–24 to 2024–25 school year:
American Government scores increased by 29.3%- 45.9% increase
Biology improved by 28.5% - 44.7% increase
Geometry increased by 15.5% - 24.9% increase
American History increased by 29.2% - 39.8% increase
7th Grade Math jumped by over 9.6% 13.7% increase
These are significant gains. They reflect the focus, consistency, and belief that are taking root in our classrooms. They also signal that our scholars, when given the support and structure they deserve, will rise to meet and exceed expectations.
Where We’ll Continue to Improve
At the same time, we’ve identified specific opportunities for growth. English Language Arts in Grades 5 and 6, and Math in Grade 6, showed a decrease in proficiency. This gives us critical insight into how we must strengthen instruction and support at the middle grades level.
We are responding to these insights with purposeful action. Under the leadership of Chief Academic Officer Mr. Aaron Bouie and Director of Special Projects and Initiatives Ms. Tiffaney Varney, we’ve restructured our Teaching & Learning Department to ensure tighter curriculum alignment and stronger coaching support across content areas. Specialists in Math, English Language Arts, and STEAM are already engaging with our schools to provide targeted, standards-aligned guidance.
Moving Forward—Together
These results affirm that our strategy is working—but we are not done. Improvement is a team effort. It comes from clear expectations, well-supported educators, engaged families, and scholars who are rising to the occasion.
To our teachers and instructional staff: thank you. Your hard work is showing up in the data.
To our scholars: we are proud of your progress—keep pushing.
To our families and community partners: your trust and support fuel our mission.
Let’s keep going. Let’s continue to build on this momentum.
Together, we are Defending Youngstown—with data, with determination, and with a shared belief that our scholars can and will succeed.