Media Contact: GaDOE Communications Office, (404) 463-1487, dtofig@doe.k12.ga.us Public Contact: (404) 656-2800, AskDOE@doe.k12.ga.us View the AYP Website July 25, 2008 -- More than two-thirds of Georgia's public schools made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in 2008, even as the bar was raised across the board. "Not only did all the academic measures of Adequate Yearly Progress go up this year, but we continued to raise the rigor of the work our students are doing, especially in mathematics," said State Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox. "But even with the higher bar and the increased rigor, a majority of our schools met the mark." Superintendent Cox released the state’s annual Adequate Yearly Progress report Friday morning. She also announced that the state's preliminary graduation rate for 2008 is 74.4 percent – up more than two points from last year. "This two point increase represents 6,000 more students that graduated on time with a full diploma in 2008," Superintendent Cox said. "This is the result of hard work by a lot of students and strong collaboration among principals, teachers, counselors, graduation coaches and parents." The final graduation rate will be calculated when summer graduates are added. This fall, the AYP report will be updated, as well, to account for summer graduates and summer retest results for students in grades 3, 5 and 8. HIGHER BAR, MORE RIGOR In 2008, it was harder for all schools to make AYP for two main reasons. First, the percentage of students that had to pass state tests in math, reading and English went up for all grade levels ( click here to see chart ). Secondly, students were doing more rigorous work and taking more rigorous tests in 2008, especially in mathematics. Superintendent Cox emphasized that in 2007-2008 the state's more rigorous curriculum and more rigorous tests in mathematics were implemented in all grades considered for AYP in elementary schools. "It was a lot tougher for elementary schools this year," she said. "Still, more than 3 out of every 4 elementary schools made AYP, the best performance of all grade levels" However, Superintendent Cox said it was important to embrace more rigorous standards in mathematics and she is confident that elementary schools are prepared. "It's very important for our elementary school students to get a strong foundation in math," Superintendent Cox said. "I have a tremendous amount of faith in our elementary school principals and teachers. I know they will rise to the challenge in math, just like they have in reading, and we will see much better AYP numbers next year." About 69 percent of all schools made AYP, including 76 percent of elementary schools. About 65 percent of middle schools and 48 percent of high schools made AYP in 2008. NEEDS IMPROVEMENT SCHOOLS There are 340 schools in Georgia that are in Needs Improvement status, meaning these schools have missed AYP for two or more consecutive years. Needs Improvement (NI) schools must offer options to parents – such as tutoring or school choice – and may need to take specific action to improve student performance. The consequence a school faces depends on how long it has been in Needs Improvement. In 2008, 37 schools made AYP for the second consecutive year and got out of Needs Improvement status -- including six that had been in NI status for five or more years (see attached list). "Even with the increased rigor and the higher bar, these 37 schools were able to get over the hurdles and shake the Needs Improvement label," Superintendent Cox said. "Congratulations to the staff, parents and students of these schools." Additionally, nine of the state's 19 "contract-monitored" schools made AYP this year (see attached list). These schools had been in Needs Improvement for 7 or more years. "These schools entered a contract with the state and promised to get the job done -- and that's just what they did," Superintendent Cox said. "This is a great example of how the state, a district and a school can work together to improve student achievement." GRADUATION RATE The state's preliminary graduation rate is 74.4 percent -- the highest it has ever been. This rate is expected to increase once summer graduates are included. "The graduation rate not only went up overall, but increased among every subgroup," the Superintendent said. "There is still work to be done, but thanks to all the effort and teamwork, we are continuing to move the needle." Under the state's NCLB plan, the graduation rate represents the percentage of students who received a full diploma in four years and a summer. This figure does not include special education diplomas or certificates of attendance ( click here to see chart ). 37 SCHOOLS THAT CAME OUT OF NEEDS IMPROVEMENT STATUS Atlanta Public Schools, Sutton Middle School Bartow County, South Central Middle School Ben Hill County, Ben Hill County Middle School Chatham County, West Chatham Middle School Clayton County, Kilpatrick Elementary School Clayton County, Babb Middle School Clinch County, Clinch County Elementary Cobb County, Norton Park Elementary School Cobb County, South Cobb High School Coweta County, East Coweta High School DeKalb County, Chapel Hill Middle School DeKalb County, Henderson Middle School DeKalb County, Woodward Elementary School Dodge County, Dodge County Middle School Early County, Early County Middle School Effingham County, Effingham County High School Fulton County, Riverwood High School Gilmer County, Gilmer Middle School Glynn County, Glynn Middle School Gordon County, Ashworth Middle School Greene County, Greene County High School Gwinnett County, Norcross High School Gwinnett County, Shiloh Middle School Gwinnett County, Lilburn Middle School Gwinnett County, Summerour Middle School Hall County, Chestatee Middle School Hall County, Lyman Hall Elementary School Hall County, Myers Elementary School Houston County, Northside Middle School Houston County, Perry High School Long County, Long County High School Meriwether County, George E. Washington Elementary School Richmond County, Hornsby Elementary School Sumter County, Staley Middle School Tattnall County, Tattnall County High School Taylor County, Taylor County Upper Elementary Whitfield County, North Whitfield Middle School NINE CONTRACT-MONITORED SCHOOLS THAT MADE AYP (Needs Improvement for Seven Years) Atlanta Public Schools, Kennedy Middle School Dougherty County, Merry Acres Middle School Hall County, East Hall Middle School Mitchell County, Mitchell County Middle School Muscogee County, Baker Middle School Richmond County, Morgan Road Middle School Richmond County, Tubman Middle School Stewart County, Stewart-Quitman High School Thomasville City, MacIntyre Park Middle School 31 SCHOOLS THAT HAVE MADE AYP FOR 10 CONSECUTIVE YEARS Atlanta Public Schools, Fain Elementary School Atlanta Public Schools, D. H. Stanton Elementary School Bacon County, Bacon County Primary School Berrien County, Berrien Primary School Bleckley County, Bleckley County Primary School Burke County, Waynesboro Primary School Charlton County, Bethune Elementary School Crisp County, Blackshear Trail Elementary School Crisp County, J. S. Pate Elementary School Dalton City, Roan Elementary School Dublin City, Susie Dasher Elementary School Dublin City, Saxon Heights Elementary School Emanuel County, Swainsboro Primary School Fayette County, Robert J. Burch Elementary School Fayette County, North Fayette Elementary School Fulton County, Randolph Elementary School Gainesville City, Enota Multiple Intelligences Academy Jasper County, Jasper County Primary School McDuffie County, Thomson Elementary School McDuffie County, Maxwell Elementary School Mitchell County, Mitchell County Primary School Monroe County, T.G. Scott Elementary School Monroe County, Samuel E. Hubbard Elementary School Oconee County, Oconee County Primary School Terrell County, Cooper Primary School Thomas County, Garrison-Pilcher Elementary School Washington County, Crawford Primary School Washington County, Elder Primary School White County, Jack P Nix Primary Wilkes County, Washington-Wilkes Primary School Worth County, Worth County Primary School SYSTEMS THAT HAD 100% OF THEIR SCHOOLS MAKE AYP Bremen City Buford City Cartersville City CCAT Chickamauga City Clay County Commerce City Echols County Evans County Fayette County Franklin County Hancock County Heard County Jefferson City Jefferson County Lee County Long County Miller County Monroe County Morgan County Oconee County Oglethorpe County Pierce County Pike County Quitman County Rabun County Randolph County Stephens County Stewart County Towns County Trion City Union County Wheeler County Wilkes County
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