More Than a Score: Celebrating Student Growth in Hilliard

A state report card is filled with numbers, stars, and percentages. But behind every number is a student.

This year’s Ohio State Report Card gives Hilliard City Schools many reasons to celebrate, including a 6% increase in third-grade reading proficiency and an 11% increase in K-3 literacy.

These gains reflect the intentional work happening in classrooms across the district. Our teachers and staff are using student data to identify needs, provide targeted instruction, adjust their approach, and challenge students to grow.

And our students are doing their part, too. They are working hard, asking questions, tackling challenging material and persevering when learning doesn’t come easily.

That combination — dedicated educators and determined students — makes these results so meaningful.

Literacy is not the only area where we saw improvement. Overall, 73% of Hilliard students demonstrated proficiency on state tests and end-of-course exams, up from 70% in 2025. Our Performance Index also increased by 2.384 points, while our Performance Index percentage improved by 1.9%.

Hilliard also earned 5 stars in Gap Closing, receiving all possible points for progress in gifted education, graduation, chronic absenteeism, English learners, English language arts and mathematics.

Ultimately, the goal is not a certain number of stars. The goal is that every student, without exception, is a student who believes they can learn something challenging, supported by an educator who believes they can achieve it.

That is the work happening every day in Hilliard, and we couldn’t be prouder of our students and staff.