Revising the College and Career Readiness Standard
The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future has a central goal of ensuring that all Maryland public school students are college and career ready by the end of 10th grade, signifying an ability to transition successfully to postsecondary coursework at a two- or four-year institution or to the workforce. The Blueprint set the interim College and Career Readiness (CCR) standard to be measured by meeting or exceeding the English Language Arts and math content standards on standardized assessments.
Once a student meets the CCR Standard, they enter an instructional pathway that builds on the student’s strengths. The Post-CCR Pathways allow students to develop in-depth specialization and/or earn a recognized credential. These include the IB Diploma, AP program, Dual enrollment or early college program, and Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. Additionally, Blueprint statute requires community colleges to enroll students who meet the CCR Standard into credit-bearing courses.
2025 CCR Standard Revision Process
The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) and the Maryland State Board of Education (State Board) are looking for comments from all stakeholders on the draft policy document that revises the College and Career Readiness (CCR) Standard.
Based on the feedback received, MSDE and the State Board will review the comments and make adjustments to the proposed policy document as appropriate. The State Board will discuss and consider this proposed policy document during its regular meeting on March 25, 2025, as well as during the State Board of Education’s Education Transformation and Finance Committee meeting on March 11, 2025.
Public comments are welcome at the March 25th State Board of Education meeting. Information on how to sign up for public comment is available at: www.marylandpublicschools.org/stateboard/Pages/PublicComment.aspx
Background
The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future has a central goal of ensuring that all Maryland public school students are college and career ready by the end of 10th grade, signifying an ability to transition successfully to postsecondary coursework or to the workforce.
The Blueprint originally set the interim College and Career Readiness (CCR) standard to be measured by scoring proficient or higher on the English Language Arts and mathematics standardized assessments. Then, in January of 2024, after the conclusion of the empirical research study, the State Board of Education adopted a new CCR standard, with two options for students to meet the standard, including using their GPA and succeeding in a math course. During the adoption process in 2024, The State Board acknowledged that this is a step in the right direction and will continue to reevaluate the CCR Standard as appropriate.
Proposed Revisions
To continue to ensure that all students have equitable opportunities to demonstrate that they are ready for college and career, the State Board and MSDE are proposing additional criteria options for students to meet the CCR Standard.
The proposed revisions include additional criteria options to meet the CCR Standard, meant to provide a greater range of students, including those before and after grade 10 as well as those that are on different post-secondary trajectories, the opportunity to demonstrate their readiness for college and career through different methods. This includes succeeding in advanced coursework, in career and technical education (CTE) courses and programs, on college entrance assessments, and through other methods. The draft policy document also further clarifies some business rules around meeting the CCR Standard, benefits of meeting the CCR Standard, roles and responsibilities for implementation, and additional guidance on the supports that should be offered to students who have not yet met the CCR Standard.
Feedback Process
The State Board and the Department are looking for feedback, from all involved, about the potential revisions that could be made to the CCR Standard.
To provide feedback to MSDE and the State Board on the draft proposed policy document, please complete the survey form linked below to provide any information and opinions that you would like to share. This form will accept responses through February 26, 2025.
