Students, educators and caregivers celebrate amazing academic successes every day in the District. As the state education agency for the District, OSSE has the unique challenge of findings ways to accurately measure student growth at the state level. Remember, the District has 71 local education agencies (LEAs) – one school district per square mile – and each has a different approach to curriculum, instruction, grading and many other aspects of the school experience. We need to use common measures, which is why our high-quality statewide assessments are so important.