Arizona Sets School Accountability Scoring Thresholds
The state maintains current scoring metrics for the 2025-26 year, with new letter grades arriving for households by November 1.
Updated on Oct. 28, 2026 in Secondary Education
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The Arizona State Board of Education has finalized school accountability scoring thresholds for the 2025-26 academic year by maintaining current levels. Families can expect the release of these latest school and district letter grades by the beginning of November.
Why it matters
Keeping thresholds consistent for the 2025-26 year allows parents to make direct, reliable comparisons of school performance year-over-year. This stability ensures that the A-F grading system remains a predictable tool for families evaluating local education options.
The board approved these thresholds on Oct. 26, confirming that the current grading baseline will hold for the 2025-26 cycle. Looking ahead to the 2026-27 school year, the system will shift to use five distinct performance indicators.
The players
Arizona State Board of Education
The state agency responsible for setting academic standards and determining school accountability metrics across Arizona.
The details
By maintaining consistent thresholds, the board ensures that a school's letter grade this year can be accurately measured against its past performance. For the 2026-27 cycle, the board is transitioning to a conjunctive accountability model, which will evaluate five specific metrics: graduation rates, English language learner performance, growth toward graduation, acceleration readiness, and the College and Career Readiness Indicator.
Timeline
Oct. 26, 2026: Board approved the 2025-26 scoring thresholds.
Before Nov. 1, 2026: Expected release date for 2025-26 school and district letter grades.
Late November or early December 2026: Scheduled study session regarding academic growth calculations.
December 2026: Board discussion on potentially raising future accountability cut scores.
The Home Front
This move keeps the state's A-F school letter grade system stable for the current academic year to preserve year-over-year data continuity. It precedes a transition toward a more complex multi-indicator framework that will govern school rankings starting in 2026-27.
Watch for the release of your local school's letter grade, which is slated to become available to the public by Nov. 1. If you are planning a move or evaluating school districts, these grades offer a standardized way to compare institutional performance across the state.
The takeaway
Maintaining current scoring thresholds ensures that your local school's performance data remains comparable to previous years. Families should keep an eye on the state board's website for the November grade release and upcoming discussions about future accountability updates.
Further reading
For more information on how local institutions are evaluated, visit the Secondary Education section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Your Valley.
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