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Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
More MNPS students are graduating, but are they future ready? Data says 'No'
Just how good was Metro Nashville Public Schools' graduation rate last year? Well, it depends on who you ask. For Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell, the 85.7% rate—the highest since the district has been keeping track of how many students end their careers with a diploma — was so good he felt the need to mention it several times during his State of Metro Address on May 1. And there's the MNPS administration — masters as they are at cherry picking data to support a narrative focusing on 'improvements' and 'level 5 status' and 'every child being known.' But if you ask anyone who's paying attention — who knows, perhaps, how to navigate the dashboard for the Tennessee Department of Education's State Report Card — they know that, while MNPS's graduation rate certainly isn't bad, it isn't exactly good either. If nothing else, it's misleading. Understand: Tennessee doesn't just track graduation rates. The Department of Education also tracks a statistic called 'ready graduate,' which 'reflects the percentage of graduating students who demonstrated readiness for postsecondary education and/or a career after high school.' The graduation rate cited by O'Connell during his address is from the 2023-24 school year, but because the State Report Card's data lags a year, the 'ready graduate' rates from 2023-24 are not yet available. But we do have data from the year before. And even if we assume a slight bump in 'ready graduate' rates to account for the 4.5-percentage point increase in graduation rate over the same period, the numbers would still be abysmal. That's because the "ready graduate" rate for the 2022-23 school year is 34.2%, meaning barely a third of graduating students were adequately prepared for the future. For Black, Hispanic and Native American students, the rate drops to 23.8%. For the economically disadvantaged, it's 20.6%. 'I want all of us to have more of the things we need,' O'Connell said during the address, including 'schools we're proud of.' As a Nashvillian who cares about all children in the city, including those who are not my own, I can appreciate O'Connell's sentiment. I also understand that the kind of progress MNPS needs to make can't happen overnight, and that O'Connell's 2025-26 proposed budget includes an increase in MNPS funding meant to directly address issues like student achievement. But to paint MNPS as an overall success for graduating 85.7% of students in the interim, or to even tout the district's record-high graduation rate without acknowledging how few of those students are on track to become economically independent adults, is to engage in the dissemination of propaganda and willful manipulation. That wasn't the approach O'Connell took when he addressed the hike in Nashville property values (an average increase of 45%), which will naturally result in higher property taxes. For the blessed residents who own their homes in this booming market, he still managed to addressed the pro and the con, speaking directly to homeowners' greatest concerns. Opinion: Tennessee student athletes deserve better, but state takeover isn't the answer Yet the same cannot be said for the people for whom Nashville, and MNPS, are less effective. These are the people who need the schools to work for them — and, perhaps more importantly, need to know when they're not. After all, the trouble with the Tuskegee Experiment wasn't just that doctors denied treatment to the men suffering with syphilis. It was that those doctors led those poor Black men to believe they were, in fact, being treated. During his address, O'Connell mentioned that Nashville has been called a beacon by other cities because thousands of us came together to pass the transit bill last November. It's a moment O'Connell is clearly proud of, and one that will likely define his legacy for years to come. But for the sake of students across the city, my prayer is that Nashville will one day become a beacon because our city chose to buck the status quo that large, urban school districts will disproportionately fail the Black, Brown, and poor among them. I pray that thousands of us can come together to ensure the educational and vocational futures of the students who don't attend Nashville's excellent academic magnet schools, who don't have access to after-school tutors, and who don't have white collar parents with college degrees who can easily assist their children with their homework in the evenings. But that's only possible if we demand, collectively, that all 85.7% of our graduating high schoolers be prepared to attend college or pursue a post-secondary certification that will position them for well-paying careers and financial stability. And that's only possible when we know that, right now, only a third of them are. Andrea Williams is an opinion columnist for The Tennessean and curator of the Black Tennessee Voices initiative. She has an extensive background covering country music, sports, race and society. Email her at adwilliams@ or follow her on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @AndreaWillWrite and BlueSky at @ This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: MNPS graduation rates hide truth of student unpreparedness | Opinion
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Area districts have varied cell phone policies
An all-day prohibition on cellphone use has helped student performance and grades, Warner School Superintendent David Vinson said. 'It's been a large part of our success for the past decade or so here in Warner,' Vinson said. 'And it's allowed our teachers to not have to compete with messages and things going on with the phones and students.' The Oklahoma Legislature is considering a ban for cellphones during the day for all Oklahoma schools. In February, the Oklahoma House passed a bill prohibiting student cell phone use 'from bell to bell.' In March, the Oklahoma Senate passed a measure prohibiting student cellphone use during the school day for at least one year. Vinson said Warner has had its all-day prohibition for the past 13 years. He said Warner Schools received C's on the State Report Card in 2012, but A's on each State Report Card since 2019. Other area schools have similar prohibitions. Rougher Alternative Academy Principal Lisa Charboneau said cellphones are not allowed past the front door. 'We have a check-in system, and at that time, the student checks their phone in and wears a corresponding lanyard with their phone storage number on it,' Charboneau said. 'At the end of the day, it's the same process in reverse to get their phone.' Hilldale Elementary and Middle Schools policies say cellphones must be turned off and out of sight during the school day. Hilldale High School allows cellphone use during breakfast or lunch, but not during or between classes. Several area schools prohibit cellphone use during classes, but allow use during lunch or between classes. Muskogee High School Principal Kinsey Clark said cellphones 'should be silenced, put away and out of sight unless the teacher gives specific permission for cellphone use for instructional purposes only.' Fort Gibson High School Principal Ben Pemberton said the FGHS started its class-time cellphone ban this year. 'The positive effect has been student engagement during instructional time; it's been greatly improved,' Pemberton said. 'It's the feedback we get from the classroom teachers that made the biggest impact. They feel like they have their classroom again and they're not fighting that constant battle between what they're presenting and what the kids are trying to view on their cellphone device. Without that distraction, it makes the learning environment more productive.' Pemberton said parents can reach their children by calling the school office during instructional time. 'Parents have always had a way to get in contact with their kids,' he said. Muskogee's 8th and 9th Grade Academy allows cellphone use before and after school, between classes and during lunch, Principal Ryan Buell said. They must not have them out during class. 'The policy works well,' Buell said. 'The vast majority of parents do not complain and come quickly to retrieve their students' phone if needed. We are very clear with this policy.' Oktaha Superintendent Laura Holt said prohibiting cellphone use in the classroom limits distraction. 'Maybe the kids' minds will be on what's going on in the classroom, not what's going on with their phone, what they're missing,' she said.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
3 Licking Heights schools win prestigious Momentum Award
Licking Heights Local Schools announced that three schools in the district — Broad Peak Elementary, Summit Station Intermediate and Licking Heights High School — have won the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce's (ODEW) Momentum Award. The Momentum Award recognizes districts and buildings that have demonstrated outstanding improvements in student achievement while also continuing to show growth. The award is for districts that have improved their performance index by three or more points from the 2022-23 State Report Card to the 2023-24 State Report Card and received a value-added progress rating of four or more stars. 'We are incredibly proud of all of the students, staff members, building leaders and district leaders who made this award possible,' said Kevin S. Miller, Superintendent of Licking Heights. 'Our major gains in student achievement and performance are all thanks to the hard work and dedication of our educators and the focus of our students. The Momentum Award is a testament to both Licking Heights as a district and to the excellence of our staff as educators and leaders.' ODEW rates both schools and districts each year on a five-star scale for their State Report Card. For 2023-24, the high school earned a 4.5-star rating, Summit Station earned a 4-star rating and Broad Peak earned a 4-star rating. Each school also increased their Performance Index by at least two points — evidence that students are scoring at higher levels on their state assessments. As a district, Licking Heights earned an overall 4.5-star rating for their 2023-24 State Report Card. This is the highest rating the district has ever received. 'At Licking Heights, our mission every day is to elevate every learner to new heights. This includes students, staff and all members of our district community,' said Tracy Russ, Licking Heights School Board President. 'These three buildings winning the Momentum Award are a perfect example of this. I want to personally thank the staff, building leaders and district leaders who made this possible.' Information submitted by Licking Heights Local Schools. This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: 3 Licking Heights schools win prestigious Momentum Award
