Cleveland's public school district held steady at 2.5 out of five stars on Ohio's 2025-26 report card, released this week, even as the state investigates possible test-score irregularities at three of the district's elementary schools that could still shift the final tally. The Cleveland Metropolitan School District's overall rating matched its 2024-25 mark, according to state data, leaving the district short of the three-star threshold Ohio uses to signal that a district meets state standards.
The rating, first reported by Cleveland.com, reflects a district managing academic outcomes against a wave of operational upheaval. CMSD posted a performance index of 54.4 for 2025-26, up only marginally from 54.3 the year before and well below the statewide average of 82.8, per the same report. The district earned four stars in both Progress and Gap Closing, but was pulled down by single-star marks in Early Literacy, Graduation, and College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness.
Layered on top of those numbers is an open question that could still move CMSD's final score: the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce has flagged testing anomalies at three CMSD elementary schools — Clark School, Paul L. Dunbar Elementary School, and Robinson G. Jones Elementary School — as part of a review into possible cheating, according to Signal Cleveland. If those scores are ultimately invalidated, the district's performance index and overall rating could be adjusted, Cleveland.com's report noted.
A Statewide Probe That Started in Columbus
A Statewide Probe That Started in Columbus The scrutiny on CMSD's three schools is not an isolated inquiry. The statewide review began in July after Columbus City Schools self-reported testing anomalies and possible cellphone use during state assessments at two high schools, which led to those scores being invalidated and prompted a broader vendor audit, as reported by WBNS 10TV. Ohio education officials, as part of the department's review, later identified statistical anomalies across 52 Ohio school buildings, according to Signal Cleveland's reporting.
Ohio's report card includes six components: Achievement, Progress, Early Literacy, Gap Closing, Graduation, and College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness. The star scale describes three stars as meeting state standards and five stars as significantly exceeding standards, per Cleveland.com's breakdown of the rating system.
Where CMSD Fell Short
CMSD reported 37.1% of third-graders proficient or better in English language arts, alongside 29.8% of eighth-graders proficient in English language arts, 29.1% in math, and 28.3% in science, according to Cleveland.com. The district's graduation rate stood at 80.6% for 2025-26. Chronic absenteeism, defined by the state as missing 10% or more of the school year for any reason, hit 54.3% among the district's 31,676 students — more than double the 23.9% statewide average, Cleveland.com reported.
Ohio's newly tightened Early Literacy calculation played a role in holding CMSD's rating down this year. Under House Bill 96, the state now measures fourth-grade promotions strictly by student reading test scores, excluding parent-approved exemptions and IEP waivers that previously could boost a district's figures, according to the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce. CMSD earned just one star in Early Literacy for 2025-26.
How Cleveland Stacks Up Against Other Ohio Districts
CMSD's flat 2.5-star showing sits alongside a mixed picture elsewhere in Ohio. Columbus City Schools, the state's largest district, also landed at 2.5 stars overall but pulled three stars in College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness for the second straight year — a metric where CMSD scored only one star, according to WOSU Public Media. Cincinnati Public Schools, meanwhile, reached 3 stars overall for the first time since Ohio adopted its star system, driven largely by a jump from two to four stars in student progress, per 91.7 WVXU — even though Cincinnati earned just one star in graduation.
CMSD's own history with the CCWMR metric provides context for its recent plateau. The district dropped from 3 stars to 2.5 stars on the 2024-25 report card, with College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness a category in which only 35% of CMSD seniors met state benchmarks at the time, according to the Cleveland Metropolitan School District. Before that change, CMSD had earned a full 3 stars overall on the 2023-24 report card.
Restructuring and Absenteeism Loom Large
The report card lands as CMSD undergoes its biggest operational shakeup in years. The Cleveland Board of Education approved CEO Dr. Warren Morgan's Building Brighter Futures plan in December 2025, which will have the district running 29 fewer school sites for the 2026-27 school year through closures and consolidations aimed at addressing multi-million-dollar budget deficits and years of enrollment decline. CMSD has also faced layoffs affecting teachers and central-office staff amid budget pressures, as Hoodline previously reported in Cleveland Classrooms Gutted As Layoff Wave Slams District.
To ease the transportation strain from consolidated buildings, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority approved a $2.5 million agreement with CMSD in July to supply 13,500 discounted daily transit passes to high schoolers for the 2026-27 school year, a step tied directly to the district's chronic absenteeism challenge. The report card's stakes remain unsettled for now: whether the pending review of test scores at Clark, Dunbar, and Robinson G. Jones ultimately changes CMSD's performance index is still an open question for state officials to resolve.
