Sarah Brown
At its Oct. 9 meeting, the Sweet Home School District 55 Board of Directors discussed most recently available graduation rates and academic standings.
Supt. Terry Martin presented the annual district profile from 2022-23 and reported that 87% of freshman students are on track to graduate, a two percent increase from the previous year (state average is 84%). As many as 88% of seniors are expected to graduate on time, a six percent increase from the previous year (state average is 81%), and 90% are earning a high school diploma or GED within five years, which is a three percent decrease from the previous year (state average is 87%).
“We run very close as to what the state runs,” Martin said. “Eighty-eight percent, that’s not good enough. Eighty-eight percent is a great number unless you’re a senior who is in that 12% that’s not making it.”
He also reviewed third grade English language and eighth grade mathematics standings.
“I’m not gonna sugar coat it. Are our scores good? No, they’re not,” he said. “Our staff worked incredibly hard. There are a lot of things we’re doing (such as) adopting new curriculum (and) providing all kinds of supports to help our students score better. I see these scores as two-fold. One, it’s a snapshot of a student on one day. Who knows what’s gone into that day prior to testing. It’s also an audit of how our system is doing, and what our audit shows is we’re not doing enough.”
According to that “snapshot,” only 35% of third-graders are reading at or above their grade level (a three percent increase from the previous year; state average is 40%), and 24% of eighth-graders are performing at their grade level (a three percent decrease from the previous year; state average is 26%).
“Reading and math, our numbers are dismal,” Martin said. “I don’t say that to deny the hard work that our teachers are doing. The reason we push for attendance so hard is if the kids aren’t there, we cannot teach them.”
While Martin agreed the numbers need to be better, he said they need to figure out what school “is about” while balancing state-mandated requirements.
The board conversed briefly about a difficulty the district is having hiring substitute teachers, with Martin also stating there has been a teacher shortage “for quite some time.” In an effort to assist students, the district brought in i-Ready, a professional learning resource adapted to each child’s needs. Responding to a comment by one of the directors, Martin said the district has made efforts to retain its current staff.
“Last year we put a considerable amount of our finances into teacher compensation, classified compensation,” he said. “We’re trying not to be the stepping stone. We’re trying to get people that want to be here, will come here and stay.”
He also noted that, during his time as a school district recruiter, he found that instead of asking about pay and benefits, many interviewees were more interested in what type of support was available.
Other “snapshot” data in the district indicated enrollment is at approximately 2,311. Martin said there is an average of one teacher per every 22 students. Nationally, he said, class sizes are starting to decrease, and he expects that trend to be seen also in Sweet Home.
Hawthorne won this month’s attendance award for reporting a 93.41% attendance record in September. Other district data indicated: 94% on the free or reduced lunch, “which is a very, very high number,” Martin said;. 14% of students are considered mobile (without adequate housing); 20% of students have disabilities; and 58% of students attended more than 90% of enrolled school days.
In other business, the board:
Heard a report that students, staff and parents earned $41,957.81 from a variety of fundraising streams at the Oregon Jamboree year;
Approved a motion to use federal ESSER funds to pay for the installation of basketball and pickleball courts at the junior high school.