Executive Summary

Cecil County Public Schools (CCPS) is rated Meets on four of five Blueprint pillars (Early Childhood Education, High Quality & Diverse Teachers and Leaders, More Resources for Students to be Successful, and Governance and Accountability) and Approaching on College and Career Readiness. The Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB) approved all seven 2024 plan components on November 21, 2024, and approved the 2025 Career Ladder on November 20, 2025 ^{[1] [2]}. FY26 Release of Funds components were approved in December 2025, and all 8 of 8 Minimum School Funding programs were budgeted ^[3].

The strongest results are in workforce and student support. Teacher vacancies reached 0 in 2025-26, the conditionally licensed rate fell from 6.0% to 2.9%, and National Board Certification (NBC) achievement grew from 0 to 28 ^[3]. Chronic absenteeism fell from 36.8% to 21.9% districtwide and from 41.0% to 24.3% in community schools, while community schools grew from 3 to 9 ^[3]. In early childhood, total Pre-K enrollment reached 613 (up from 571 in 2022-2023), private providers grew from two to seven, and Kindergarten Readiness (KRA) rose from 39.4% to 43.1% ^{[3] [4]}.

The main challenges are academic outcomes and financial capacity. Grades 3-8 math proficiency is 22.6%, below the 25% threshold, and Grade 5 math proficiency fell to 17.4% ^[3]. Teacher retention of 78.4% is below the 79.7% target ^[3]. The district cites a $21 million local funding gap that would force staff and program cuts without additional local funding ^[3].