Important Information on Upcoming Devereux Student Strengths Assessment

As part of the Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) commitment to social, emotional and academic learning (SEAL), all ACPS schools are using a tool to help identify the life skills that students have already learned and what skills they may still need to develop.

The Devereux Student Strengths Assessment (DESSA) questions have been reviewed by the division and deemed appropriate for use by teachers of students in grades K-8 and for self-assessment of students in grades 9-12. Access to the results will be limited to those who directly serve the student. Families will be able to review their child’s results in the PowerSchool parent portal during the 2024-25 school year.

Families have the right to opt out their child from participation by informing their school counselor by September 16, via the form on the ACPS DESSA webpage. Students in grades 9-12 may also opt-out on the day the survey is given.

Once schools identify skills that might need additional development, staff will work to incorporate those areas into daily SEAL lessons. Our goal is to ensure that every child is continuously developing the skills needed for lifelong success, both inside and outside of the classroom.

For students in grades K-8, the DESSA mini tool asks teachers to assess how often a student has demonstrated specific life skills in the past month. Students in grades 9-12 will take the DESSA High School Edition Student Self-Report and assess their own skills over the past month. The assessment will be completed twice in the 2024-25 school year – in fall 2024 and spring 2025.