Fairfax County Public Schools students hit an 80% pass rate in both reading and math in 2026, with reading at its highest mark in six years, according to district data presented Oct. 22.

All 195 FCPS schools also earned full accreditation for the 2026-27 school year. That is the second consecutive year the district achieved the benchmark, and it includes McLean High School, Langley High School and Cooper Middle School.

Accreditation is now based on operational compliance rather than academic outcomes, according to the district's accountability presentation. Statewide, 99.7% of Virginia's 1,818 schools earned full accreditation, with five conditionally accredited.

The academic gains go beyond the pass-rate headline. Math scores have climbed 19 percentage points since 2021. Science pass rates rose to 76%, up 11 points over four consecutive years of improvement.

Reading gains showed up across student groups. Black students' reading pass rate rose from 73% to 75%. Economically disadvantaged students improved from 58% to 61%. Hispanic students went from 56% to 59%.

The district also saw a jump in its School Performance and Support Framework (SPSF) ratings, the state's system for measuring mastery, growth, graduation and readiness. Fifty-six percent of FCPS schools earned a "Distinguished" rating, up from 38% the year before. Seventy-five percent were rated Distinguished or Meets Expectations, compared with 70% statewide.

Fourteen FCPS schools, about 7%, were rated "Needs Intensive Support." The district did not release school-by-school SPSF ratings in its public presentation, so individual ratings for McLean-area schools are not yet available.

Former multilingual learners who gained English proficiency now outperform division averages in both reading and math, according to the district's data. Current multilingual learners posted a 33% reading pass rate and 46% in math, with scores rising at higher English proficiency levels.

As WTOP first reported, the statewide share of Distinguished schools doubled from 23% to 44% under Virginia's SPSF, now in its second year. The Virginia Department of Education said elementary school improvement was driven in part by gains on the growth indicator.

Superintendent Michelle Reid presented the results at the Oct. 22 School Board meeting. Robyn Lady, the Dranesville District representative who chairs the board, represents the McLean and Langley school pyramids. Lady is a former school counselor at McLean High School.

Families can look up individual school results through the Virginia Department of Education's School Quality Profiles at schoolquality.virginia.gov.