The Virginian-Pilot
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More Norfolk schools failed to meet state accreditation targets than any other division this year, ranking it among the worst performing school systems in Virginia.
A total of 16 South Hampton Roads schools, including 10 in Norfolk, were denied full accreditation, according to data released Thursday by the State Department of Education.
Last year, four local schools - three in Norfolk and one in Portsmouth - failed to meet state Standards of Learning benchmarks and secure full accreditation.
The surge in underperforming schools was spurred in part by a new requirement that incorporates graduation and dropout statistics into high schools' accreditation standards.
The nine local high schools that weren't fully accredited met every standard except the graduation index.
Every Chesapeake school made the grade - the only local division to do so.
Failing to earn full accreditation can hurt a division's reputation but rarely results in more than bad publicity. Schools that fall short of full accreditation in consecutive years can be required to come up with an improvement plan and notify parents of changes, but the state cannot pull funding or force schools to close.
In Norfolk, about one in five schools missed full accreditation. Nine divisions statewide, all smaller than Norfolk, saw a higher percentage of schools fail to meet the benchmarks.
In light of the results, Norfolk School Board Chairman Kirk Houston on Thursday called for a thorough review of all division practices.
"From approaches, to instruction, to curriculum, professional development and accountability, we have to look at it all," Houston said. "Everything has to be on the table because this is an urgent matter - for me, that's a crisis."
In a meeting with principals Thursday morning, Norfolk Superintendent Richard Bentley said he took the accreditation ratings personally, according to division spokeswoman Elizabeth Thiel Mather. Bentley told the principals changes are needed.
On Wednesday, before the results were announced, Bentley stressed in an interview that without the new graduation requirement, all five of the city's high schools would have been accredited on the basis of their SOL scores.
One strategy to improve will be closely monitoring individual student performance and reacting immediately to help the student, Bentley said. He also said principals must be "bold and courageous" in applying methods used in the division's successful schools.
"I don't have a magic bullet; I don't think anyone does," he said. "It takes two, three, four years to do a complete turnaround."
Bentley said he has seen improvement at Lafayette-Winona Middle School, which missed accreditation targets for the sixth consecutive year.
The school was among four statewide that lost accreditation last year, but the division has asked for conditional accreditation because the school has made some gains.
Norfolk officials made the same request for Lindenwood Elementary, another school at risk of losing accreditation after missing state benchmarks for the fourth straight year. The State Board of Education is expected to rule on both requests next month.
In Virginia Beach, administrators were surprised to see Green Run High on the list of schools failing to make full accreditation. The school missed the graduation index benchmark of 85 by one point, according to the state data, but school leaders said their calculations showed the school meeting the target.
School officials were working with the state Thursday to review the data.
"We're doing a student-by-student check to make sure the state has the same data we have," said Jared Cotton, the division's assistant superintendent for accountability. The review could take days, he said.
Virginia Beach's Bayside Middle also did not meet full state targets and was accredited with warning.
Portsmouth and Suffolk each had two high schools fall short of accreditation.
Statewide, 86 percent of high schools met full accreditation standards, down from 99 percent a year ago.
School divisions were notified about the graduation calculation more than two years ago, education department spokesman Charles Pyle said.
Some superintendents initially resisted adding the measure to accreditation standards, but schools should be held responsible if students don't finish high school, Pyle said.
"If you don't hold schools accountable for outcomes, you're only holding schools accountable for the students who are still there." Pyle said.
Pilot writers Hattie Brown Garrow, Elisabeth Hulette and Steven G. Vegh contributed to this report.
Mike Hixenbaugh, (757) 222-5117, mike.hixenbaugh@pilotonline.com
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Hire the best and most qualified, Green Run
Mr. Parker, principal, was recently in the news because he gives preferential treatment to selected candidates for employment. Now, his school does not meet the basic of standards. Maybe, Mr. Parker should hire the truly most qualified and improve instruction at his school.
I am confident that all the
I am confident that all the teaching staff at Green Run HS have indeed met the basic standard of graduating from high school. Whether or not a child graduates from high school has more to do with the home environment than the school.
Mr. Parker needs to hire the best of the best.
The home environment does play a part. So does quality teaching and programs. Most programs are run by teachers. Mr. Parker has stated he considers diversity in his hiring practices at the expense of hiring the best of the best.
Mr. Parker needs to focus on achieving the basic state standards for Green Run. To do that he needs to hire the best of the best. Plain and simple.
I like your name Eureka! I
I like your name Eureka! I am doing student teaching at a school called Eureka Elementary.
You have to think about the demographic when hiring teachers at Green Run. Mr. Parker says that he looks at hiring more diverse teachers because the students are diverse. You need teachers that the students are going to be able to relate to and want to listen to. You can have the best teacher, but if they can't relate to the students, the student isn't going to care what the teacher is even saying.
You might want to rethink your position.
You might want to rethink your position. All students recognize horrible, weak, average, above average, and great teachers. Many, if not most, struggle if they do not experience the best of the best in the classroom.
To surmise that learning and achievement is directly proportional to the ethnicity of the teacher is only true in a very small percentage of cases. Students want great, caring, and competent teachers in their lives regardless of color. They want teachers willing to be involved in extracurricular activities.
Mr. Parkers should hire teachers at Green Run based on the above criteria and leave all personal bias at the door before he enters the building in the morning. If he does, his school will perform better.
Time for change?
Maybe it's time for charter schools? Union teachers have had their time to prove they know best how to teach. I think their time is over and we should bring on charter schools and privatize where possible. The Dept. of Education is a dinosaur that needs to go away and let each state run their schools without any unions!
Where have you been?
Virginia is a right to work state. The teachers union has little to no clout at all in eastern Virginia. The only reason charter schools and private schools do well is that they can pick and choose their students. And in many cases, charter schools still don't fare as well as public schools.
Glad to be out of there...
I don't know Mr. Parker at Green Run, but I do know that the quality of the teaching staff is inadequate. My kids attended Green Run for a short time; we picked up and moved to Chesapeake to get into a better school system. This was the best decision we've ever made for our kids; quite frankly our younger children that had less time at Green Run were much more successful academically overall. Most of the teachers at GR don't seem to care (I'm sure there are some exceptions).
I find it very hard to
I find it very hard to believe that you personally knew over half the teachers at Green Run High School, so your statement that "most of the teachers" didn't seem to care is not credible.
I graduated from Green Run
I graduated from Green Run in 2008 and now I am a senior at Longwood University about to graduate in May. I actually have a great relationship to this day with many of my former teachers at Green Run. They are part of the reason I decided to become a teacher myself. My time at Green Run was some of the best years of my life and I feel as though I was prepared for college when I arrived to Longwood because of Green Run. All in all, you get as much out of your education as you put into it! There's only so much a teacher can do, it is the responsibility of the students just as much as the teacher!
SOL results
"Norfolk Superintendent Richard Bentley stressed that without the state’s new graduation requirement, all five of the city’s high schools would have been accredited on the basis of their SOL scores." Without graduation requirements why would high schools even exist? I'd love to be a fly on the wall when Bentley and the school board discuss that one!
These tests have as much to
These tests have as much to do with standards as does the Jeopardy television show. Students are taught how to pass multiple choice tests and not skills needed for the real world like how to manage a budget, run a business, change a tire, or anger management. I would suggest that those who find the SOL's beneficial to take the released tests themselves. Students are motivated to pass the tests with gimmicks. Some teachers have told their students if 100 percent pass a particular test they will dye their hair blue for one day. The tests are celebrated like a sports event. America did quite well without them. Teaching is an art; test taking is not.
when
schools were accredited on sol scores only, the schools cheated by moving smarter kids to dumber schools to raise the overall scores, I'm confident they will find a way to cheat around this as well
the major reason an elected board is needed in Norfolk
"Norfolk had more schools fail to earn full accreditation than any other division in the state."
We need some freakin' accountability in Norfolk.
As long as the city council appoints its cronies to the school board, Norfolk schools will continue their death spiral.
The silence from city hall is deafening on this issue. Change is needed. We've crashed and now we are burning in Norfolk.
Help!
accreditation
If I lived in Norfolk and had Kids I'd move real fast.Norfolk only once pretty things like light rail,they don't care about money for education.
That's what I did in '80.
No choo-choo then. It was the Granby Mall and cross town busing. Both failures. Never looked back.
There are some very good
There are some very good schools, teachers and students in Norfolk. There are many parents that care and that are involved and aware and want to work to make all schools better. Running away doesn't solve the problem.
Just because the demographics in Norfolk schools are different than those in the affluent Chesapeake areas, doesn't mean the schools/teachers/quality of education is worse. I'm so tired of that perception.
Running from Norfolk
People always seem to come out in support of Norfolk's crappy schools, and I listened to them for a while, but eventually my experience confirmed the evidence, and I moved to Virginia Beach. I'm not sure why Norfolk residents continue to deny what everyone else can plainly see.
PARENTS??????
ATTENTION ALL PARENTS...your involvement is needed for your children to be successful in school!!!!
Comment deleted
Comment removed for rules violation. Reason: Personal attack, name calling
.....and life.
.....and life.
BENCHMARKS?
What is the criteria for "BENCHMARK SCORES"?
Says it all
This paragraph says it all.
"Failing to earn accreditation can hurt a school division’s reputation but rarely results in more than bad publicity. Schools are given time and leniency to improve test scores. The state doesn’t have authority to pull funding or force low-performing schools to close."
What percentage
of these students not passing are from lower income families with little to no parent involvement? This makes a very large difference. Teachers can ONLY do but so much. If these students don't want to learn or don't have parents who stay ontop of their learning they are NOT going to learn. I have seen it time and time again. I have worked in the school system for 18 years and it gets worse and worse every year. Many of these kids don't care and their parents don't care. I had a parent just the other day call regarding an appointment with her sons teacher and needed to cancel or reschedule it;when asked what school he attended she could not tell me. She said hes in high school I don't know the name of the school but its in this city.
excuses
Stop making excuses and start finding ways to help these 'low income/unable to learn' kids.
Being a 'lower income
Being a 'lower income family" does not equate to no parental involvement, nor does a middle or high income equate to more parental involvement. Rich folks can be lousy parents, poor folks can be excellent parents.
Hooray for Norview High School
Norview High
Accreditation Rating Fully Accredited
Grade 6-8 and EOC English 94% Meets Benchmark
Mathematics 92% Meets Benchmark
History 80%
History Status Meets Benchmark
Grade 3 Science 1 Not Tested
Science 88% Meets Benchmark
Graduate Completer Index 86
Graduate Completer Index Status Meets Benchmark
PARENTS
PARENT'S it's your responsibility to raise your children. Don't expect the teachers to do your JOB!!!!!!
individual performance not school performance matter
Based on your comment, these performance results do not serve much purpose. Regardless of the schools' results, it should not reflect on the performance of the individual child. However, colleges do consider performance results when considering admittance into certain programs.
GREAT JOB!
Congratulations Chesapeake Public Schools! All are fully accredited!
wow
surprised to see Maury high school on this list.
I am going to put my 2 cent in. It’s not all the teachers faults it’s the students and the surrounds they are brought up in. The saying is hard work pays off. You put hard work in you receive good results. Obviously the results of the student are not reflecting hard work. You can have a low income child with high test scores and grades as well as a well off child with 2 parents with low test scores and grade . At the end of the day it’s all in what you put in.
Time to change their logo to..
The old logo of "Nationally recognized, Globally competitive" needs to say "Nationally recognized, Globally competitive, and Locally embarrassed." Until school leaders begin to weed out the kids who make learning difficult for those in school to learn, Norfolk will continue to go down the drain. Norfolk keeps their teachers enslaved in disruptive and threatening classrooms with over 60% of the population unwilling to sit down let alone learn. They are so desperate for teachers that they hire anyone, because even the most seasoned of teachers is overwhelmed and just plain over the feral children that are in their classroom!
i love it
'feral children'.....!
25 years and nothing has changed in norfolk
When moving to Norfolk 26 years ago from the northeast of the US I was told not to put the kids in public schools here...it was good advice....a few years later I found myself in Virginia Beach where public schools much better but still not anywhere near what I was used to in the north east of the US. Over the years and some discussions with some school folks I have learned there is some real differences in how schools are paid for and delt with in the south. Some if it a hold over from the discrimination days of the past....A school principal once told me why do you think there is a historic short supply of pools in the school system in the south? Discrinination in the 60's and 70's I was told...And funding has never caught up.
thumbs down means one is righrt...
got to love it.
"delt"
"delt" instead of "dealt." Did they teach spelling up there?
Not in this case
I suspect people are enjoying the irony of someone who praises the superiority of schools in the northeast who writes a paragraphs rife with spelling and grammatical errors, to include something as basic as subject-verb agreement.
I know I am.
You completely ignore the
You completely ignore the fact that SOL's are peculiar to Virginia, and that only 2 weeks ago it was reported that Virginia had one of the highest SAT scores in the whole country - higher than any state in the northeast.
This is the reason for the
This is the reason for the new 'bussing' schools are practicing. Districts have the policy of spreading the underperforming students around to the performing schools thus diluting their impact on any one school. This is why Crestwood Middle is sent to Great Bridge High.
This is the reason for...
My child attended Crestwood Middle but he doesn't go to Great Bridge High.
Crestwood middle is a feeder
Crestwood middle is a feeder to GBH.
Wrongo
Students from the Crestwood area have been going to GB for years. Long before SOL testing was implemented.
No they haven't.
No they haven't.
Excuses and denial in Norfolk.
What? Portsmouth has better parents and higher socio-economic demographics than Norfolk? They only had two schools accredited with warning.
And all those other school districts throughout Virginia who are fully accredited have it better than Norfolk?
Oh! It's the tests' fault? They've all taken the same tests.
Those other districts cheat! Waaa! Waa! Waaa!
And that "teaching to the test" whine is a red herring.
Good teachers can effectively teach the subject matter (including critical thinking) well enough to pass the tests WITHOUT "teaching to the test."
Come on, Norfolk!
Stop with the denial, self-pity, and excuse-making!
Get with it!
Pass the dang tests!
Darn near every other school district in Virginia has done
Read the artcle and look at
Read the artcle and look at the stats. They passed "the dang tests." The only thing preventing high school accreditation was the high school drop out rate.
One more thing..
Check out Norfolk Public Schools Facebook page, their mechanics in writing are no better than their students. It says " Obama is schedule to give..." it should say "scheduled." I wonder if the superintendent proofreads this?
Naw.
The mantra concerning typos and imptoper usage consists of "Well, You know what I mean", and that's supposed to be good enough to get by. If William Buckley were alive today, he would be turning over in his grave!
"The mantra concerning typos
"The mantra concerning typos and imptoper usage consists of "Well, You know what I mean", and that's supposed to be good enough to get by. If William Buckley were alive today, he would be turning over in his grave!"
The irony is rich here. If Buckley is turning over in his grave, you've added to those rotations yourself.
"imptopter?"
Punctuation goes inside quotation marks, not outside.
Still, your post is good enough to get by, I guess.
Mea Culpa
When you find the wet noodle, I will submit myself for punishment! I believe 50 is the proper number of lashes.
(BTW, read my other post. I TOLD you I was a HS dropout!)
16 Local Schools SOL for
16 Local Schools SOL for Failing to Meet SOL
Just another...
Just another sign of the slow but gradual decline of all the standards in our society. We need less rhetoric and more strong positive leaders who are not afraid to raise the bar.
This is actually Very Good news presented badly by VP
Here's the quote from the article "The nine local high schools that weren't fully accredited met every standard except the graduation index." So let me repeat the 9 high schools that weren't fully accredited MET EVERY STANDARD except the graduation index. I really don't think you can meet the graduation index and quite frankly whether kids stay in school is more indicative of bad parents and home life than anything the teachers and administrators can do. If a an adolescent doesn't see the value in at least graduating High School and drops out, we know they are setting themselves up for a very difficult life. It's a feeling of overwhelming hopelessness that causes dropouts and there's very little schools can do to change that.
Sounds like more
Hope and Change coming lol
Cause and Effect
Pointing at one school, teacher, committee, group or anything else may ease parents consciences but in reality it changes nothing. Education in this country has changed dramatically, partly due to technology, partly due to lifestyle, and partly due to politics. The truth is that in many ways the world is co-parenting our kids through the internet. We have opened ourselves to both the good and bad. Along with educating our children, before the internet, cell phones, and technology, monitoring what was influencing our kids was a lot easier. Even the most responsible kids need parenting and supervision both at home and school. Being involved, promoting responsibility as well as accountability would go a long way towards success.
No matter what.......
Even if Johnny is behind it makes me feel better knowing money that could have gone to education was spent on stopping a lone pizza delivery guy who was on the sex offenders database. One must always have their priorities in order. Right school Board?
PLEASE READ!
The article SAYS the students met the criteria for scholastics. What they didn't do was stay in and graduate! All the improvement on teaching in the world won't do any good if the students drop out.
I know. I dropped out of HS after grade 11, and joined the service. Doesn't have a THING to do with scholastic achievement. (BTW, I DID get my GED, and have done quite well, I think.)
Hang Your Heads
Shame, shame and more shame!!!! Maury High is on the provisionally accredited list. I hear it is because of their graduation rate.
While I appreciate retaining students who fail to make the grade, I am horrified that my alma mater made this shameful list. It is enough to make this old Commodore cry!
It is time that we put our money in the CLASSROOM and not into useless administration. Administrators deciding where tax dollars shall go is putting the "fox in charge of the henhouse"!
Instead of blaming teachers, questions should be asked of principals. What kind of support are the teachers receiving? Do teachers have the support of school administration when students act up in class?
Shame....it is a crying shame.
RE: don't worry...solutions are on the way
Virginia will eventually get a "waiver" from NCLB, and then they will be allowed to provide alternatives for schools that don't perform well. That will mean charter schools, which perform even worse than public schools overall. They do cost more money to run, because private companies hire administrators who are very expensive to keep. The charters go after high performing students, and leave everyone else in the dust. Better yet, there will be fewer teachers, because computer programs based on national standards will be teaching our children all they need to know in life. I really welcome the future of education; it will be taken care of by private companies, and we all know they do a great job of making our nation strong.
lol...no bias here
What do we think the bias of this person is?
Good Leadership is There
I am surprised to see Granby and Maury on the list. Both have good teachers and leaders. I had children graduate from specialty programs in both schools and was impressed all the way through.
Definitely Hire the Best
I definitely agree the good teachers are needed to improve our schools. So when I read a comment that one school was using preferential hiring I went back to the source and read the original Pilot article. It is not true Dr. Parker indicated that diversity was important in schools and if there were two equally qualified candidates he would then consider any diversity needs on the staff. Read the article.