Despite Ordway Elementary and Bainbridge High School’s recent “failing” status under the federal No Child Left Behind law, school administrators have been quick to reassure parents the label does not reflect true student progress nor the quality of education on Bainbridge.

The question remains though of what will happen if next school year, the district’s five remaining schools also reach “failing” status.

“Worst case scenario, if every school needs to be restructured, I don’t know what that will mean,” said Jeff McCormick, director of assessment for the Bainbridge Island School District.

In a meeting last week with Ordway parents, McCormick and Ordway Principal Melinda Reynvaan explained that almost all schools in Washington state failed to meet the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements under No Child Left Behind.

This includes Bainbridge’s seven schools.

Blakely, Wilkes, Sakai, Woodward and Commodore have been placed under a “warning” status.

Under AYP, 100 percent of students must pass the state tests in reading and math. Any less than 100 percent, places the school in a “warning” status.

If a school does not meet the 100-percent requirement two years in a row, it will be labeled as “failing.”

Once more, “failing” schools that receive Title I funding to support struggling learners must use 20 percent of the funding to pay for transporting students who wish to attend a non-“failing” school.

While BHS does not receive Title I support, Ordway does and will be subject to bussing students using the funding.

If not all the money is used to transfer students, McCormick said, it will roll back into Title I.

Bainbridge schools have been subject to a couple of key political changes in the past four years.

In the 2010-2011 school year, Ordway and BHS received “warning” status.

The following year, though, Washington was granted a two-year waiver that allowed schools that fell behind the NCLB requirements to receive professional development support and work to improve its passing rate on standardized testing before it would be labeled “warning” or “failing.”

Under the waiver, each school saw improvements and avoided “failing” status.

The waiver was lost at the end of the 2013-2014 year.

Unless Congress revises NCLB or 100 percent of Bainbridge students pass the state tests in reading and math, Bainbridge’s five schools under “warning” will join BHS and Ordway as “failing” next year and in Step 1 of improvement.

During last week’s meeting, some parents questioned what would happen in a worst-case scenario.

“It sounds like the chances of any school hitting this mark is exceedingly difficult,” said one parent.

“When Ordway and presumably the other schools have hit the failing mark, what are the punitive measures that you are likely going to have to deal with and are anticipating,” he asked.

McCormick said that the worst-case scenario is still hazy.

By law, schools who are in Steps 4 and 5 of improvement undergo restructuring, but that’s the only plan the school district has right now.

As for bussing to non-”failing” schools when all the schools are considered failing, he’s not sure, but expecting Congress to amend the law is not an option.

“We’ve been living under this law since 2001, so — to answer your question — yeah it’s exceedingly improbable that Congress will act,” McCormick said.

It’s a system that 30 superintendents in the Puget Sound have said is “regressive and punitive” when taking into account the students who opt out of test-taking with a parent referral, special education students who do not meet the grade-level standard, and English language learners.

Regardless, two things were emphasized last week when administrators met with Ordway parents:

Although there will be increased testing, the student learning experience will not change in the 2014-2015 school year.

Second, despite its new “failing” label, Ordway received significant improvements from last year’s standardized test results.

Data released Wednesday, Aug. 27 shows that 86 percent of third grade students met standards in math, an increase from 64 percent in 2013.

In reading, 80 percent reached standard — a 62 percent increase from 2010-2011 proficiency when the school was under a “warning” status.

“Instead of labeling schools ‘failing,’ we’re working to make a difference through high-quality instruction delivered by dedicated teachers, strong leaders and collaborative partnerships with parents, families and community,” said BISD Superintendent Faith Chapel.

One parent asked administrators last week if his child would notice a difference at school this year now that Ordway is considered “failing.”

“K-4 kids don’t understand politics, and a lot of this has to do with politics,” said Ordway counselor Janette Dodge.

“My son is going to know no difference going from kindergarten to fourth grade what his sister did. He’s not going to know that he’s taking maybe four more tests or that we don’t meet AYP, that’s not something we talk about as a school with the kids,” she said.