Page 11 - Florida Sentinel 1-8-16 Edition

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School District Sees Increase In Graduation Rate
Superintendent Agrees With New Concept Of Grading
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
On Wednesday, the State Board of Education approved a new concept for grading schools and student test scores. The changes came about because of statewide change to the new Florida Standards Assessment.
When contacted by the
Sentinel, Jeff Eakins, Hillsborough County School District Superintendent said, “I approve the concept and I think it is fair as far as the grading scale goes. However, I have an issue with the fact that the schools won’t get any points for the gains they have made and that is what we continue to oppose. It won’t create a level playing field.
“We have a lot of schools
JEFF EAKINS Hillsborough County School District Superintendent
that have done great things and won’t see those credits added into their overall grades.”
Eakins said that because the schools will lose those credits, there will be a spike in lower graded schools in
Hillsborough County and all over the state. He said more schools will receive “D” or “F” grades.
However, he said, “Next year, the credits gained will be included and the grades will improve.”
The new Florida Stan- dards Assessment test offers a pass or fail score concept. It was recommended by Ms. Pam Stewart, State of Florida Education Commis- sioner.
The schools must earn 62% of the points available to earn an “A” rating; 54% to earn a “B” rating; 41% to earn a “C” rating; and 32% to earn a “D” rating.
The school grades for the 2014-2015 school year are expected to be released on February 9th.
The Hillsborough County School District recently an- nounced there are more stu- dents graduating. The information is based on new information released by Florida Department of Educa- tion.
State graduation rates for the class of 2015 were just re- leased, showing an increase across the state of 1.7 percent- age points over last year.
Jeff Eakins, Superintend- ent of Hillsborough County School District said, “We will celebrate the increase of our graduation rates across all of our schools from kindergarten through high school. We know all of the great work that is being done in our schools is with the same vision of getting students on track to graduation and preparing them for life,” said
Hillsborough County Public
Schools went up 2.5 percentage points over last year, increas- ing the graduation rate to 76%. Increasing graduation rates is one of the four strategic priori- ties for the School Board and the district.
Many of the schools made significant strides including Plant City High School, which went up 19% in five years. Mid- dleton High School had an 8% increase in one year and a total of 15% since 2011. Wharton High School had similar growth, increasing 7% since last year and 14% from 2011.
The graduation rate for both our Hispanic students and our African American stu- dents increased 4% in one year, further closing the achieve- ment gap.
Kindergarten Roundup Period
Hillsborough County Pub- lic Schools will hold a Kinder- garten Roundup period for the 2016-2017 school year during the month of January.
Families interested in en- rolling their child in their as- signed, attendance area school should attend the Kinder- garten Roundup event sched- uled for that school. Kindergarten Round Up offers the student a firsthand look at kindergarten life, introduces parents to the school, and al- lows attendees to become ac- quainted with the campus.
Parents who attend are en- couraged to bring their child’s birth certificate, health and home address documentation to register their child for kindergarten.
Parents unable to attend the Round Up are encouraged to enroll their child in school by the end of June 2016. Par- ents who would like to re- search their kindergarten options may visit various Roundups and apply for School Choice or a magnet school during the application period.
The Hillsborough Choice application period for elemen- tary schools closes January 31. Families can apply directly online for School Choice and magnet options by visiting www.sdhc.k12.fl.us and search “Go Choice.”
For more information, con- tact Terrie Dodson-Caldev- illa at 813-272-4048.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 2016 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 11-A