Grad rates improve at 3 high schools

Matt Bower
Posted 2/3/15

Following a downward trend from 2011 to 2013, the Warwick school district saw a slight increase in its graduation rate from 2013 to 2014, according to results released last week by the Rhode Island …

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Grad rates improve at 3 high schools

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Following a downward trend from 2011 to 2013, the Warwick school district saw a slight increase in its graduation rate from 2013 to 2014, according to results released last week by the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE).

RIDE looked at the four-year, five-year and six-year graduation rates from 2011 to 2014 in districts throughout the state to see how they performed over the past four years.

Looking at the four-year rate, from 2011 to 2013 Warwick appeared to be on a steady decline, dropping from 82 percent in 2011 to 79 percent in 2012 and 77 percent in 2013, but rose 2 points to land back at 79 percent in 2014.

The five-year graduation rate in Warwick was more sporadic, increasing from 79 percent in 2011 to 83 percent in 2012 before dropping to 80 percent in 2013 and remaining there in 2014.

The six-year graduation rate experienced the opposite trajectory of the four-year rate, steadily increasing from 77 percent in 2011 to 79 percent in 2012 and 83 percent in 2013, then dropping to 81 percent in 2014.

In a press release from RIDE, Toll Gate High School was recognized as one of six high schools throughout the state that improved its four-year graduation rate by more than 5 percentage points in the last year, increasing from 76 to 82 percent.

“I’m really happy and excited,” said Toll Gate Principal Stephen Chrabaszcz.

Chrabaszcz said one of the keys to a successful graduation rate is ensuring students attend classes and show up on time.

“We try to tell students that their future comes out of this building. There’s so much you can’t get at home or online,” he said. “It’s important to come to school – it’s a great place to be.”

Chrabaszcz said students are allowed two late attendances per quarter before receiving a detention.

“When imparting knowledge and working with people, it’s important to come to school and start classes on time from the first bell,” he said. “We work hard with the students.”

Chrabaszcz said he’s a lucky man to work with the students that he does.

“I take pride in that,” he said, adding he always has an open door policy and anyone can come and talk with him if needed. “Toll Gate is a special place. It’s all about the kids. I’m really proud of the students and proud of the staff and faculty. We’re always trying to get better.”

Warwick Veterans Memorial High School and Pilgrim High School each improved by 3 percentage points, increasing from 77 to 80 percent at Vets and from 80 to 83 percent at Pilgrim.

“We’re on an upward swing,” said Superintendent Richard D’Agostino. “The students and staff work very hard.”

When asked what accounts for the bigger increase at Toll Gate, D’Agostino said it all depends on different student populations and different types of programs that are offered, which vary on an individual basis.

He said one such program that is helping the district overall is the credit retrieval program, which was started several years ago at Warwick Vets and is designed to ensure students graduate on time.

“If a student fails a course, working with a facilitator at Vets they can take an online course for credit in whatever they’re behind in and graduate on time,” D’Agostino said, adding that while the program is located at Vets, it serves all students in the district. “We’ll be expanding that at Toll Gate and Pilgrim next year, so students can take advantage of it in their home school.”

D’Agostino said there are currently 28 students involved in the after school program this year, which meets at 2:30 and 4:30 p.m. twice a week.

“Department nights, teachers working with students before and after school, and better communication between parents and teachers are all things that we’re working on,” D’Agostino said. “We also have a new early warning program to identify students in junior high at risk of not graduating, so we can identify their needs, support them and keep them in school.”

“We stay on them and they hopefully get across the stage,” Vets’ Principal Gerald Habershaw said in an interview Saturday. He said staff members identify students who are lagging in their graduation by proficiency projects, working with them to ensure they complete this graduation requirement. And, he said, the attention doesn’t stop at the end of the academic year. Students failing to graduate on schedule are urged to attend summer school and complete requirements.

D’Agostino mentioned another program, Opportunity to Learn, which is designed for students that have been out of the classroom long-term.

“Everything is clicking; teachers and administrative staff are in tune to the needs of students,” he said. “When everyone is supporting the push to do well, we’re there.”

D’Agostino said he expects the graduation rates to continue to increase but said it takes the whole community working on the same page.

“We’re meeting the needs of students at the lower grades with improved instruction, more rigorous instruction and more avenues to learn,” he said. “Hopefully that will carry through.”

According to the report released by RIDE, the 2014 Rhode Island graduation rate rose to 81 percent, a 1-point improvement over the previous year and a 5.5-point improvement since 2009. The dropout rate declined to 8 percent, a 1-point improvement over the previous year and a 6-point improvement since 2009.

“As we make creating opportunities for all Rhode Islanders a priority, we must continue this momentum to make sure our kids build the skills they need to compete in a 21st-century economy,” said Governor Gina Raimondo in the release. “Earning a high school diploma is one important component to making our state stronger for everyone.”

According to the release, “the improvements attained in 2014, especially in dropout rates, are consistent across a range of student groups. The dropout rate for black students, for example, (11.5 percent) marks a 6.5-point improvement since 2009. The dropout rate for Hispanic students (13 percent) marks a 10-point improvement since 2009. Similarly, since 2009, dropout rates for economically disadvantaged students have fallen by 8.5 points (to 12.5 percent), dropout rates for students with disabilities have fallen by 7 points (to 16 percent), and dropout rates for English learners have fallen by 10 points (to 14.5 percent).”

Eva-Marie Mancuso, chair of the Board of Education, said she was pleased to see the improvements and congratulated students, parents and teachers.

“Our top priority is to prepare all of our students for success beyond high school, and we can see from the 2014 graduation rates that more of our students are persisting in school and earning a high school diploma,” she said in a statement.

Patrick A. Guida, chair of the Council on Elementary and Secondary Education, said 2014 was a year of raised expectations.

“As we continue our transition to the Common Core State Standards and to new statewide assessments, I am confident that our students will continue to make progress and that our graduation rates will consistently improve,” he said in the release.

Education Commissioner Deborah A. Gist said the state holds high expectations for students and they’ve stepped up to meet the challenge.

“I am proud of their accomplishments, and I am confident that, every year, more of our graduates are ready for success in postsecondary education and in challenging careers,” she said in the release.

National information on the 2014 graduation rates is not yet available. According to a U.S. Department of Education report, Rhode Island’s 80 percent graduation rate in 2013 was 1 point below the national average and tied for 29th among all states. The state’s 3-point improvement was better than the country’s 2-point improvement over the two-year span of the report.

A report on the 2014 Rhode Island graduation and dropout rates is posted on the RIDE website at www.ride.ri.gov/InformationAccountability/Accountability.aspx.

 

Note: The annual graduation rate and dropout rate combined do not equal 100 percent of the graduating class. The remainder includes students who have entered GED programs and students still in school working to earn a diploma at a later date.

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