Boardman's 'excellent' rating is at risk

School officials are working to make sure Adequate Yearly Progress is met.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Most residents would have a hard time finding fault with the performance of the Boardman schools on the most recent state report card.
The district successfully met 17 out of the 18 standards on the test and received an overall performance designation of "excellent." Still, state officials say the district must shape up and also have labeled the district as "at risk."
Frank Lazerri, superintendent of schools, understands the testing system that has allowed the schools to be labeled as at risk, but he questions whether the system is fair and adequate in the first place.
"It is pretty puzzling to all of us that we can be listed as at risk," said Lazerri.
According to Lazerri, in the past, pupils taking the test in a given school system were counted as one group in that school system. That, he said, has changed to include 10 subgroups for scoring the test in each school system.
Bob Hendrickson, director of instruction, said pupils are divided into six ethnic subgroups: Asian/Pacific Islander, African American, American Indian, Hispanic, multiracial and Caucasian. There are also subgroups for pupils needing an Individual Education Plan (IEP), those with Limited English Proficiency (LEP), the economically disadvantaged and the overall student body.
Haven't met target
One of the subgroups in Boardman has not met the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in a portion of the test for the last two years -- leading to the at-risk designation. Last year, the African American subgroup did not meet AYP in mathematics. This year, the IEP pupils did not meet the AYP criteria for reading.
Not meeting the AYP standards for two consecutive years has placed the district in a more dire situation for the next test. Even if the district meets all standards on the test and does not meet AYP in any category, the district cannot be considered an "excellent" district. The district will drop to a "continuous improvement" designation.
The continuous improvement designation is two levels below an excellent designation.
Lazerri and Hendrickson said there are also other penalties for the district if AYP is consistently not met. They said the school system could be made to write a continuous improvement plan for the state, and state officials could eventually begin shifting and changing administration in the school system.
Inconsistencies
Hendrickson said that the school system is working to meet the needs of all its pupils but that there are certain aspects of the testing rules that make for an uneven playing field.
"A lot of the schools that are excellent do not have a significant enough population for their AYP to be calculated," he said.
According to Hendrickson, a school system would need at least 30 pupils of a given subgroup before that subgroup can be counted for testing purposes. The number is slightly higher for IEP pupils, he said. Many school districts, he said, do not have those numbers and AYP in those districts is not counted for those subgroups.
Boardman did not have to meet AYP on the last test for Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian, Hispanic, multiracial or limited English speaking pupils.
"We are considered at risk because one subgroup of only 30 [pupils] didn't meet AYP in a school district of almost 5,000," he said.
Hendrickson said some excellent schools also, because of their affluent populations, have more resources from which to pull to work toward passing the test.
Hendrickson said school officials are working to address any issues that would lead to AYP's not being met for a third year.
Hendrickson said any government money allocated to the district must be applied to the areas of the district's pupils' greatest needs. He said school officials will look over data to determine what those areas of need are and design programs to address them.
jgoodwin@vindy.com