Tonya McIntyre is hard at work on a Competency Determination to replace MCAS

In November 2024, Massachusetts residents voted to abolish the MCAS as a graduation requirement and replace the standardized test with district-designed policies requiring students to demonstrate mastery of math, English, and science. At ARHS, Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Tonya McIntyre is working with department heads, administrators, and DESE to write a new policy that explains how students will prove they have done what it takes–in the absence of the MCAS test–to earn a diploma.

The 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform Act established the Competency Determination (CD) as a requirement for graduation in Massachusetts. This law also created MCAS as a means of measuring competency. The first MCAS test was administered in 1998 and the first students to meet that Competency Determination graduated in 2003.

The use of MCAS as a graduation requirement has been criticized since the test was created. According to the Citizens for Public Schools, opponents of MCAS argue that it disproportionately prevents BIPOC and special education students from graduating and creates unnecessary stress for students. Supporters say the test is necessary to maintain Massachusetts’ high academic standards.

The use of MCAS as Competency Determination ended in 2024, after a statewide vote.  The ballot question that allowed voters to do away with MCAs read: “Instead, in order for a student to receive a high school diploma, the proposed law would require the student to complete coursework certified by the student’s district as demonstrating mastery of the competencies contained in the state academic standards in mathematics, science and technology, and English.” 

Just a few months before this vote, McIntyre took her job with ARPS. Prior to that, McIntyre worked for 30 years in public education. She began her career as a high school mathematics teacher and spent 25 years in the classroom before moving into central office leadership. McIntire is also a doctoral student in Strategic Leadership in Education at Belmont University and a graduate of the Yale School of Management’s Broad Center Master’s in Public Education Management program. 

McIntyre did not expect to become an educator when she was young, but after college, she got a job teaching math in her hometown and fell in love with it. Twenty-five years later, as her capstone project for a graduate program at Yale, McIntyre became the Community Outreach Director for her district. When the funding from the program ended, McIntyre decided to look for another job.

Today, McIntyre’s job entails “aligning the curriculum” to meet student needs. She’s committed to making sure students across the district have access to an equitable curriculum and the resources they need.

As someone who recently moved to Massachusetts, McIntyre thought it was unclear what system would replace MCAS. “How does [eliminating the MCAS as CD] change what happens next?” she asked. She wondered whether voters knew that taking the MCAS test would still be required, even if it didn’t count toward competency. “It felt as if there was a misunderstanding about that,” she said.

Without MCAS, a Competency Determination for students graduating in 2025 was left up to school districts. DESE required that students “demonstrate mastery” in the subjects previously tested by MCAS, but this was ambiguous. The policies were posted on school district websites, but not reviewed by DESE. 

For most districts, demonstrating mastery meant passing English, science, and math classes, but the number of classes varied widely. At ARHS, the required courses were two years of English, two years of math, and one year of science. 

In January 2025, Governor Healy established the K-12 Graduation Council to create a more permanent Competency Determination for future graduating classes. This group examined graduation requirements in other states, held listening sessions, and administered surveys to inform their decisions.

In September, the Graduation Council released the “Vision of a Massachusetts High School Graduate,” a set of six skills, like “creative problem-solving” and “intentional collaboration,” that MA high school graduates should have.  A press release on the topic called this system “the first step in creating a new statewide graduation standard to ensure all students leave high school with the skills necessary to succeed in college, careers, and civic life.”

A couple of months later, the Graduation Council created new “interim” graduation requirements: the equivalent of two years of English, two years of math, and one year of science, with one year of US history required starting with the class of 2027. But according to the council, just passing classes no longer counts as mastery; districts need to design other ways to determine mastery.

“A Competency Determination can look like a lot of different things,” McIntyre said. For example, competency in math could be determined by one or more tests. Mastery of English could be demonstrated with a portfolio of summative writing assignments. In science, CD could involve labs. It could even be “a district-wide test similar to MCAS,” McIntyre said, but there will likely be a different Competency Determination for each subject.

McIntyre meets weekly with department heads of English, math, and science to design Competency Determinations for those subjects. In November, she will finish drafting the policy and submit it to the school committee, who will vote on whether or not to approve it.

The policy will go through multiple revisions, with feedback from teachers and the school committee, before it is submitted to DESE in December. If DESE does not approve the policy, it will need additional revision. The process is “more complicated” than it was in the 24-25 school year, McIntyre said, but will probably result in a more permanent policy.

McIntyre said that one challenge she’s encountered has been making the new policy work for special education students. It’s unclear whether special education versions of core classes, like Topics and Concepts classes, align with state requirements. Despite this, McIntyre believes in “ensuring that we’re being equitable to those learners,” she said. “People are being champions across the state, making sure we’re not excluding people from these opportunities.” 

While creating the new CD policy felt “bumpy” at first, McIntyre said she sees it as an opportunity to increase access and equity at ARPS. “I have no issue looking at things that increase access,” she said. “If that means changing the Competency Determination, then that’s what I’ll do. I’m okay with that.”