ROWLAND UNIFIED CONTINUES ACADEMIC GROWTH AND CLOSING ACHIEVEMENT GAPS ON STATE ACCOUNTABILITY REPORTS
ROWLAND HEIGHTS, CA – SEPTEMBER 13, 2010 – Today the state released the 2009-10 Accountability Progress Report (APR), which includes the Academic Performance Index (API) and the federal Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) report for academic growth for schools. Rowland Unified Superintendent Dr. Maria Ott reports that the District continues to make growth in AYP and API results.
“I am particularly proud that all of our student subgroups made gains, the largest from our African American students (making 24 points of growth) followed by our socio-economically disadvantaged students with 20 points of growth. This proves the hard work and progress our schools are making in closing the achievement gap,” said Ott.
For the sixth year in a row, Rowland Unified continues to outperform the State and County, with a 2010 Growth API score of 792. The District schools across Rowland also continue to perform at high levels, with four schools receiving scores above 900: Blandford Elementary with a score of 921, Shelyn Elementary reaching 909, Oswalt Academy at 906 and Ybarra Academy of the Arts and Technology at 902. Schools receiving scores above 800 are: Rowland High School with a score of 817, Killian Elementary at 889, Hollingworth Elementary at 829, and Alvarado Intermediate at 859. Nogales High School had one of the highest gains in the District, with a 34 point increase to a score of 729.
“The Federal No Child Left Behind accountability system is complex and flawed because it does not recognize the hard work of teachers and schools that demonstrate year to year growth that you see in the state’s accountability system,” said Ott. “Schools and districts are designated as Program Improvement (PI) as a result of a system that needs to be revamped. Congress will be looking at this issue when they review changes recommended by the U.S. Department of Education.” Approximately 55% of the Districts in Los Angeles County are designated as Program Improvement (PI).
Both the API and AYP are based upon statewide assessment results from the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program and from the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE). All reports and data files are available through the State APR Web page at www.cde.ca.gov.
The Rowland Unified School District is proud to serve 16,500 students at 21 elementary and secondary schools in the communities of Rowland Heights, Walnut, La Puente, City of Industry, and West Covina. Permits allow students from other communities to attend our schools. More than 5,000 adults (16+) are also served by the Rowland Adult and Community Education School. For more information about Rowland Unified, call (626) 965-2541 or visit www.RowlandSchools.org.
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