Over the next two days, Hawaii State Department of Education Deputy Superintendent Ronn Nozoe will share Hawaii’s successful improvement efforts at schools participating in the School Improvement Grant (SIG) program with state education leaders during the U.S. Department of Education Symposium, School Turnaround: Building and Sustaining Success, being held in Washington, D.C., August 20-21.
Hawaii public schools supported by federal School Improvement Grants (SIG) are celebrating overall gains or sustained results in reading and math proficiency on the 2012 Hawaii State Assessment. SIG targets additional support for schools that need the most improvement.
This year’s results are particularly noteworthy with five of Hawaii’s seven SIG schools making Adequate Yearly Progress under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. The schools are Hauula Elementary, Hilo Intermediate, Kau High & Pahala Elementary, Keonepoko Elementary, and Naalehu Elementary.
“I commend our principals, teachers, staff, parents, and students for boldly embracing and successfully undertaking the demanding and rewarding work of school turnarounds,” said Nozoe. “This year’s test scores and Adequate Yearly Progress results are early indicators that Hawaii’s innovative reforms are gaining traction and creating better learning environments for improved student achievement.”
Mary Correa, complex area superintendent for Kau-Keaau-Pahoa, said, “School improvement grants played an important role in transformation efforts occurring in our complex area schools. We are seeing positive results and groundbreaking changes that are real, substantive, and sustainable in the Zones of School Innovation.”
Hawaii State Assessment results
School Improvement Grant (SIG) schools |
| Reading | Math | Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) status |
School (grade levels) | 2011 | 2012 | Change | 2011 | 2012 | Change |
Kau High & Pahala Elementary (K-12, ZSI) | 48.3% | 52.2% | +3.9% | 31.6% | 39.1% | +7.5% | Met |
Keonepoko Elementary
(K-6, ZSI) | 53.9% | 60.1% | +6.2% | 48.3% | 48.2% | 0 | Met |
Naalehu Elementary (K-6, ZSI) | 42.3% | 45.4% | +3.1% | 32.9% | 46.8% | +14% | Met |
Hilo Intermediate (7-8) | 70% | 78.7% | +8.7% | 52.8% | 57.3% | +4.5% | Met |
Kamaile Academy Public Charter School (K-9)* | 38.6% | 33.3% | -5.3% | 19.5% | 21.2% | +1.7% | Not Met |
Hauula Elementary (K-6) | 59% | 60.1% | +1.1% | 46.5% | 53.4% | +6.9% | Met |
Hawaii School for the Deaf and the Blind (PreK-12)** | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10.3% | +10.3% | Not Met |
Note:
*Kamaile Academy is a public charter school managed by the Hookakoo Corporation (HC), an independent governing body, authorized by the state’s Charter School Commission. The HC Board of Directors serves as the local school board for three conversion charter schools.
**Hawaii School for the Deaf and the Blind, a public non-charter school, serves the state's deaf and deaf-blind students from preschool through high school.
At this week’s national symposium, Nozoe will highlight Hawaii’s SIG success and engage in strategic conversations about how SEAs can effectively implement and sustain school turnaround efforts.
The USDE has provided over $4 billion to fund School Improvement Grants to more than 1,300 schools across the country. To date, Hawaii has received approximately $14.4 million in SIG funding distributed among seven public schools with the highest need and commitment to use funds to substantially raise the achievement of students.
2012 School-by-School results for the Hawaii State Assessment will be released later this week.
