Overland Park Chamber of Commerce – July 18, 2007 – All three of Overland Park’s school districts – Blue Valley (USD 229), Shawnee Mission (USD 512), and Olathe (USD 233) – received a “Gold” ranking in the 16th annual Education Quotient™ (EQ) ratings. Gold is the most prestigious rating for the 2,819 secondary school districts around the country included in the EQ rankings, which is released by Expansion Management magazine, a bimonthly business magazine for executives of companies actively looking for a place to expand or relocate their facilities within the next one to three years.

Blue Valley ranked particularly high with a total EQ of 98. Only two school districts in the country rated higher. Shawnee Mission’s EQ of 96 places it in the top 8% nationally.

All the nation’s secondary school districts with an enrollment of at least 3,300 students were evaluated. Ratings were calculated on a weighted scale that measured three indices: Graduate Outcome (how well students learn and how many graduate), Resource Index (a community’s financial commitment to education), and Community Index (the community’s adult education and income levels). All three indices, as well as the EQ score, were calculated on a scale of one (lowest) to 99 (highest), with 50 being the midpoint.

Unlike other educational ratings, which equate excellence to the level of public funding received, the EQ focuses primarily on results. Although it includes data on spending, teacher salaries and the socioeconomic background of surrounding communities, by far the most important factors are test scores and graduation rates.

“Many people — primarily journalists and educators — ask why a business magazine like ours would rate high school districts and, on the surface, it seems like a reasonable question,” explained Bill King, managing editor of Expansion Management. “The reason is that employers want to know if their potential workers are smart enough to do the job, and if they will show up for work every day. While 28 percent of adults in the U.S. have a college degree, simple math tells you that, for 72 percent of adults, high school is their highest level of formal education.”

The mission of the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce is to enhance and sustain the economic environment and quality of life in our community. For more information on the Chamber and its programs, call (913) 491-3600 or visit opks.org.