Three campuses lead region in academic growth

By Submitted, 11/17/18 12:27 AM

HOPE – Students at three of the five campuses of the Hope Public Schools demonstrated sufficient academic growth levels in ACT Aspire Math and English Language Arts from the 2017-2018 administration of the test to put them in the top five schools in southwest Arkansas. Beryl Henry Elementary School was the top performer overall and in each category across Southwest Arkansas, according to the University of Arkansas Office for Education Policy.
BHE, Yerger Middle School, and Hope Academy of Public Service were three of the top five student growth performers across the region, according to the UA report released Nov. 14.
“We are very proud of the efforts of our students, parents and staff,” Hope Superintendent Dr. Bobby Hart said. “The growth and improved outcomes for these campuses are a direct result of the hard work and commitment that all three groups have done. They are just one more example of how HPS is moving forward.”
BHE led the middle school category across southwest Arkansas in Overall Middle School ACT Aspire growth with a content growth score of 83.11. BHE serves grades five and six.
“The students’ academic growth at Beryl Henry Elementary is a reflection of everyone working together to meet the needs of our prized pupils,” BHE Principal Dr. Roy Turner said. “Our staff certainly believes in giving ‘Every Child, Every Chance, Every Day.’”
BHE topped the region in Middle Math ACT Aspire Growth with a score of 82.80, and Middle ELA ACT Aspire Growth at 83.15, according to the UA OEP report.
Yerger Middle School was No. 3 across southwest Arkansas overall with a content growth score of 80.54. YMS serves grades seven and eight.
YMS was fourth across the region in math growth with an 80.00 score and fifth in southwest Arkansas in ELA content growth at 81.05, and was tied with HAPS in that category. The HAPS campus serves students across grades five through nine.
The OEP acknowledged a shift in emphasis in its latest assessment of Arkansas schools.
“This edition of the OEP Awards highlights schools in Arkansas based on student growth on the ACT Aspire exams in Mathematics and English Language Arts (ELA),” the report states. “This is a departure from prior awards, which were based on student proficiency.”
The OEP said the change was a better reflection of individual student performance over time.
“Proficiency rates, even those that move beyond the ‘percent proficient’ like our OEP GPA and Arkansas’ weighted achievement score, are more correlated with student demographics than growth scores,” the report states. “This means that schools can demonstrate high student growth regardless of the characteristics of the students that they serve.”