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Three SPESD schools score over 800 in STAR testing

September 18, 2009
Santa Paula News

Three schools in the Santa Paula Elementary School District have scored over 800 in the state Academic Performance Index (API), two of them for the first time.

By Brian D. WilsonSanta Paula TimesThree schools in the Santa Paula Elementary School District have scored over 800 in the state Academic Performance Index (API), two of them for the first time.Thelma Bedell School hit 860, followed by McKevett at 850 and Grace Thille at 827. Glen City School was close, reaching 793. All schools in the district show big gains in the STAR testing. Blanchard was up from 716 last year to 771 this year. Barbara Webster was at 740 this year, compared to 721 last year. Isbell Middle School reached 737 this year, up from 688 last year.
Six of the schools met their growth targets with Barbara Webster not reaching their goal. Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Assessment and Instruction, Mercy Ramirez there was an error in the information collected by the County Schools Office and the December report could change the data, including that for Barbara Webster. “I’m very excited with the results for the Santa Paula Elementary School District,” she said. “Everybody’s working together. The dedication and commitment of the teachers and all employees has made a difference.”The District scores also show most of the schools met the Federal Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) goals, except for Barbara Webster School. The majority of the schools had big increases in both English Language Arts and Math. The English Language goal for proficient or above was 46 percent. All seven schools met the target with the exception of Barbara Webster. In Math all schools met the target of 47.5 percent proficient or above.Schools still in Program Improvement Status are Barbara Webster (year 3) and Isbell (year 5). The district as a whole remains in Program Improvement Status as well (year 3). Ramirez noted that they have three, new, experienced teachers at Barbara Webster now and a consultant is working with the staff to help them. “It’s exciting to see the results of our work in a years’ time,” she added.