5 districts hit mark, 4 miss

Five school districts in Union and Wallowa counties met all of the federal adequate yearly progress (AYP) standards, according to new 2008-09 ratings released by the Oregon Department of Education.

On the other side of the ledger, four school districts in Union and Wallowa counties did not meet all AYP standards but many came within a hair’s breadth of doing so. The standards are part of the federal No Child Left Behind program.

The Cove, Union, Enterprise, Joseph and Wallowa districts met all AYP standards. The La Grande, Imbler, North Powder and Elgin districts fell short of meeting all standards.

Here is the breakdown:

In the La Grande School District, Central and Island City elementary schools met AYP standards but Greenwood Elementary, La Grande Middle School and La Grande High School did not.

At Greenwood, all AYP standards were met except in the reading category for students with disabilities. Reading test scores for students with disabilities dropped 2.7 percent.

This drop is atypical when compared to Greenwood’s other student test scores in AYP categories, said Larry Glaze, superintendent of the La Grande School District.

Glaze said overall test scores at Greenwood were up 1.46 percent for reading and 13.5 percent for math. The superintendent also noted that math scores for students with disabilities jumped 21 percent at Greenwood.

At La Grande Middle School all AYP standards were met except in the category for students with disabilities. The percentage of students with disabilities who met math and reading score requirements was below the state standard.

At La Grande High School, all AYP standards were met except for students in two sub-groups — those with disabilities and pupils from economically disadvantaged families. The percentage of LHS students in these two categories who met state standards was below the AYP standard.

Glaze said that overall he was pleased with the La Grande School District’s AYP ratings.

“We showed strong improvement in a lot of areas,’’ he said.

Glaze noted that the AYP report does indicate the school district needs to boost assessment test scores for students with disabilities. The district is now addressing this issue.

“A special education plan is being developed to carry us forward,’’ Glaze said.

In the North Powder School District, AYP standards were met in all areas except for students with disabilities in reading. Scores jumped in this category but were shy of the required percent growth rate, said North Powder School District Superintendent Lance Dixon. The superintendent is frustrated by the AYP report because he does not believe it reflects the true progress North Powder students are making.

He points out that AYP reports consider only students in third through 10th grade. Dixon noted that a pupil in the students with disabilities category who failed the reading assessment test as a sophomore passed it as a junior in 2008-09. The North Powder district likely would have met the reading standard for students with disabilities had that student’s test scores been counted.

“It’s frustrating,’’ Dixon said.

In the Elgin School District, all AYP standards were met at the high school but not at Stella Mayfield School. AYP standards for reading and math for students with disabilities were missed at Stella Mayfield. All other AYP standards at Stella Mayfield were met, according to the Oregon Department of Education’s website.

At the Imbler School District, the high school and elementary school met all AYP standards. Still, the Imbler School District overall did not meet all standards. The reason is two sophomores did not take state assessment tests in 2008-09, said Imbler School District Superintendent Doug Hislop. This dropped the percentage of Imbler sophomores taking the assessment tests under the AYP standard.

Hislop said he believes the students did not end up taking the tests because they, like many Imbler students, are involved in a wide array of school activities. Heavy involvement in school activities, Hislop said, makes it challenging for Imbler administrators and teachers to make sure all students take assessment tests.

Hislop said steps are being taken to guarantee that all Imbler students take the assessment tests in the future.

The AYP figures released by the state are listed as preliminary since they can be appealed.

Statewide, 853 of Oregon’s 1,262 public schools met AYP standards, according to the Oregon Department of Education. A total of 350 schools did not met AYP standards.