For Students and Families

Hope High School Online can be an excellent school option. Many of our students come to us after a traditional setting didn't work for them. They may be behind on credits, balancing a job or family, dealing with health issues, or just needing a different path. This grade shows that choosing Hope High School Online is not settling for less.

For Our Teachers and Staff

The grade truly is a reflection of the often unseen work of our team: checking in on students who go quiet, helping a senior finish one last credit, and connecting graduates to dual enrollment, certifications, and careers. Perfect scores in persistence and on-track progress don't happen by accident. They come from people who refuse to let students slip through the cracks.

For Blueprint Education

Since 1969, Blueprint's mission has been to inspire students to make better choices and be champions of their own learning. An "A" from the state is independent confirmation that this mission is working. It strengthens our standing as a charter operator, our reputation with families and community partners, and our case for continued growth.

In a Tough Year Statewide

This year was harder for many schools. The share of Arizona high schools rated D or F rose from 1.8% to 8% (KTAR News). Moving up to an A in that environment makes this result even more meaningful.

Looking Ahead

An A is a milestone, not a finish line. The State Board of Education has approved major changes starting with the 2026–2027 school year. Bonus points will be removed and cut scores will rise, so it will take more points to earn each letter grade. Grades under the new system will be released in October 2027 (Arizona State Board of Education FAQ; ABC15).

We're ready for that challenge. Our focus areas are clear:

• Proficiency: improving student results on the ACT and state assessments, our biggest opportunity for growth.
• Credits Earned and Graduation Rate: helping more students finish more credits each year and cross the graduation stage.
• Sustaining our strengths: keeping our near-perfect results in persistence, on-track progress, and college and career readiness.

 

Hope High School Online is officially an "A" rated school (State of Arizona)

From a C to an A: what the grade means, how the state calculates it, and how we accomplished our goal

It's official! On October 29, 2026, Arizona released its 2025–2026 school letter grades, and Hope High School Online earned an A, the HIGHEST rating in the state's accountability system (Arizona State Board of Education, FY26 A-F Public File).

"A" schools are classified as "excellent" (Arizona State Board of Education FAQ). "This "A" grade means a great deal," states Mark French, CEO of Blueprint Education, "especially for an alternative online high school. Many students came to us after falling behind somewhere else, unable to fit within a traditional school environment. It reflects years of steady work by our teachers, our staff, our families, and most of all our students."

How Arizona Grades Schools

Arizona law requires every eligible public school to receive an annual A–F letter grade. The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) calculates grades, and the State Board of Education sets the "cut scores," which are the points needed for each letter (Arizona State Board of Education FAQ).

Grade	Classification
A	Excellent
B	Highly performing
C	Adequately performing
D	Minimally performing
F	Failing

 

(The Arizona Republic via Detroit News)

The Alternative School Model

Hope High School Online is graded under Arizona's Alternative 9–12 A–F Model. The state created this model for schools that:

• serve students who are behind on credits
• have dropped out before
• face other challenges that put them at risk of not graduating

Traditional high schools are graded mostly on test scores and growth. The alternative model also counts what matters most for these students: staying in school, earning credits, staying on track, graduating, and being ready for what comes next. Arizona started giving letter grades to alternative schools in 2018–2019 (Arizona State Board of Education).

The model is built on these weighted indicators (Alternative 9–12 A-F Plan, State Board of Education):

Indicator	What It Measures	Weight
Proficiency	Student results on the ACT (ELA and math) and the MSAA alternate assessment	15%
Academic Persistence	Whether students re-enroll in a public school the next year	10%
Credits Earned	Students earning at least 4.5 credits, or all the credits they still need to graduate	10%
On-Track to Graduate	Student progress toward graduating on time	10%
English Learner Proficiency & Growth	AZELLA results for English learners (when a school has enough English learners to be graded)	10%
Graduation Rate	The best of the school's 4-, 5-, 6-, or 7-year graduation rates	10%
College & Career Readiness (CCRI)	Points seniors earn for college and career readiness, such as dual enrollment, industry credentials, CTE, and test benchmarks	35%
Bonus Points	Up to 3 for 9th-grade ACT Aspire participation, plus up to 6 for strong graduation rates among homeless, foster care, and special education students	Added on top

Persistence, Credits Earned, and On-Track to Graduate together form the "Growth to Graduation" indicator, worth 30% of the grade. College and Career Readiness is worth 35%, the largest single share in the model (Alternative 9–12 A-F Plan; ADE State Accountability).

The Math Behind Our A

Hope High School Online does not have enough English learners to be graded on that indicator. We are eligible for a max of 90 points. The state divides the points we earned by 90, then adds our bonus points to get the final percentage. Here is our 2025–2026 scorecard (FY26 A-F Public File):

Indicator	Points Earned	Points Possible
Proficiency	5.21	15
Academic Persistence	10.00	10
Credits Earned	5.00	10
On-Track to Graduate	10.00	10
Graduation Rate	5.76	10
College & Career Readiness	32.10	35
Total (before bonus)	68.07	90
Bonus Points	+7.00	—
Final Percentage	82.64%	Grade: A

The calculation: 68.07 ÷ 90 = 75.6%, plus 7 bonus points = 82.64%.

Things we are proud of:

• Perfect scores in Academic Persistence and On-Track to Graduate. Students who start with us stay with us, and they keep moving toward a diploma.
• 32.10 of 35 points in College & Career Readiness. This is the biggest part of the grade, and our graduates are leaving ready for college, careers, and the military.
• 7 bonus points. These reflect strong results for students who often get overlooked: students experiencing homelessness, students in foster care, and students receiving special education services.

Our Journey to an A

Blueprint Education has served Arizona students since 1969. Hope High School Online opened in 2004.

Our letter grade history under the state system:

School Year	Letter Grade	Percentage Earned
2018–2019	C	61.04%
2019–2020	No new grade (COVID-19)	—
2020–2021	No grade (COVID-19)	—
2021–2022	C	53.45%
2022–2023	B	66.46%
2023–2024	B	72.07%
2024–2025	B	78.09%
2025–2026	A	82.64%

Sources: FY19, FY22, FY23, FY24, FY25, and FY26 A-F files

This year we gained 4.55 more percentage points and crossed into A territory at 82.64%. From our lowest point after the pandemic, that is a gain of more than 29 percentage points in four years.

Hope High School Online is a tuition-free, Cognia-accredited, NCAA approved Arizona public online charter high school serving grades 9–12, operated by Blueprint Education. Learn more at hopehighonline.org.