School Corporation Opportunity Score (SCOscore)

The School Corporation Opportunity Score (SCOscore) is a measure of potentiality for learners in a school community. It is a composite score that combines multiple factors, particularly structural factors such as race and SES, as well as performance factors such as test scores and graduation pathway completion rates, to provide a more holistic view of school corporations.

The SCOscore of a school corporation is calculated through the following formula:

$$ S_{O} = \frac{\left[\left(P_{urm} \times 1.5\right) + \left(P_{frl} \times 1.5\right) + S_{ac}\right]}{3} $$

where $S_{O}$ is the SCOscore, $P_{urm}$ is the proportion of underrepresented minority students, $P_{frl}$ is the proportion of students eligible for free or reduced lunch, and $S_{ac}$ is an academic achievement score for the corporation as a whole.

The academic achievement score accounts for 3rd grade ELA proficiency, 8th grade math proficiency, and graduation pathways completion rates.

Usage of SCOscores

The SCOscore is a tool for school-engaged faculty and researchers to identify school corporations with highest level of potential opportunity. It is not a tool for ranking school corporations, but rather a tool for prioritizing school corporations with the highest potential for opportunity. The threshhold score is 1, which indicates the transition between high priority (scores above 1) and low priority (scores below 1).

Indiana University-Indianapolis has prioritized engagement with schools meeting the threshold score of 1, and has set the goal of 80% engagement with school corporations with a score of 1 or higher by 2030.

An interactive website for exploring the SCOscore is available at jeremyfprice.github.io/scoscore/.

Data Sources

• Indiana Department of Education's Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed (GPS)
• Urban Institute's Education Data Explorer