46 APS Schools Beat the Odds
APS Exceeds the State; APS is Second Among Large Metro Districts
This information is hot off the press, and I’m so pleased to be sharing it with you!
According to new analysis just out today from the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement (GOSA), 46 APS schools, or 52 percent of our schools, “Beat the Odds!” Based on the calculations released by the state, APS has the second-highest percentage of schools that Beat the Odds when compared to other metro-area districts. In addition — wait for it — APS beat the overall state rate, which came in at 32 percent!
Beat the Odds Percentages for State and Metro-Area School Districts:
Gwinnett County Public Schools | 56% |
Atlanta Public Schools | 52% |
State of Georgia | 32% |
Fulton County Schools | 29% |
Clayton County Public Schools | 29% |
DeKalb County Schools | 25% |
Cobb County School District | 14% |
I share with you all the time how proud I am of our students, our teachers, our principals and other school leaders and staff for the new gains they continue to make. We are striving toward excellence and we continue to be on a Journey of Transformation. We’re stepping forward toward new gains each day and are excited about the traction we’re making.
I want to highlight our 46 schools that Beat the Odds and give a special shout out to each school principal for a job well done!
APS Schools that Beat the Odds | School Principal |
Barack and Michelle Obama Academy | Robin Christian |
Beecher Hills Elementary School | Crystal Jones |
Benteen Elementary School | Andew Lovett |
Boyd Elementary School | Joi Kilpatrick |
Brandon Elementary School | Jay Bland |
Brown Middle School | Tiauna Crooms |
Burgess-Peterson Academy | David White |
Carver Early College | Marcene Thornton |
Centennial Academy | Tequila Lamar |
Charles R. Drew Charter School | Gregory Leaphart / Peter McKnight |
Charles R. Drew Charter School Elementary Academy | Monishae O’Neill |
Cleveland Avenue Elementary School | Anyee’ Payne |
Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy | Eulonda Washington |
Dobbs Elementary School | Charnita West |
Fickett Elementary School | Benita Grant |
Finch Elementary | Forrestella Taylor |
F.L. Stanton Elementary School | Phyllis Earls |
Henry W. Grady High School | Betsy Bockman |
Hollis Innovation Academy | Diamond Ford |
Hope-Hill Elementary School | Maureen Wheeler |
Kimberly Elementary School | Joseph L. Salley |
Kindezi Old 4th Ward | Rajvee Bhalakia |
KIPP Atlanta Collegiate Academy | Chanika Perry |
KIPP STRIVE Academy | Kim Karacalidis |
KIPP STRIVE Primary | LaKeesha Ramdhanie |
KIPP WAYS Academy (5-8) | Nathaniel Snyder |
Long Middle School | Lisa Hill |
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School | Paul Brown |
Mary Lin Elementary School | Sharyn Briscoe |
Maynard H. Jackson High School | Adam Danser |
Miles Intermediate Elementary School | Thalise Perry |
Morningside Elementary School | Audrey Sofianos |
Parkside Elementary School | Timmy Foster |
Perkerson Elementary School | Tony Ford |
Peyton Forest Elementary School | Cynthia Gunner |
Ralph J. Bunche Middle School | Octavius Harris |
Samuel M. Inman Middle School | Kevin Maxwell |
Sarah Smith Elementary School | Emily Boatright |
South Atlanta High School | Patricia Ford |
Sutton Middle School | Gail Johnson |
Sylvan Hills Middle School | Artesza Portee |
The Kindezi Schools (Kindezi West) | Hyla Penn |
Tuskegee Airmen Global Academy | Yolanda Weems |
Warren T. Jackson Elementary School | Brent McBride |
Wesley International Academy | Donald Mason/ Debbie Satterfield |
Westside Atlanta Charter School | Delana Reeves |
I also want to recognize Deputy Superintendent David Jernigan and the entire Schools and Academics team, especially our Associate Superintendents Dr. Danielle Battle, Yolonda Brown, Dr. Emily Massey, Dr. Dan Sims, and Tommy Usher; our Chief Accountability and Information Officer Bill Caritj and his team, including Michael LaMont and the Data Information Group for providing us with a full analysis of these results.
As we work toward achieving improved results, we must continue to look at our schools’ overall academic performance holistically. We can’t and don’t look at just one indicator or another to measure progress. We have to look at all of it.
Beating the Odds is just one piece of information we use to analyze school performance,and it serves as a complement to this year’s CCRPI data that came out in October of this year (click here for my blog post on that). But, it also shows us that there are measurable academic gains happening across our school system.
Now, to give you a broader perspective on the Beat the Odds analysis, here’s a little more background and more information that explains this year’s calculation and why it can’t be compared to previous years:
- The Beat the Odds calculation represents whether a school’s performance on the College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI) was higher than schools with similar characteristics across the state. Due to changes in the Beating the Odds calculation and changes in CCRPI, this year’s analysis is not comparable to previous years.
- The new calculation for this year includes variables that are outside of a school’s control, such as school size, percent directly certified, percent English language learners, percent of students with disabilities, percent of students in each race (excluding Native American), school churn rate, whether a school is defined as non-traditional and the school type.
Also, in previous years, schools were designated as “Beat the Odds” or “Did Not Beat the Odds,” but the new calculation this year has separated “Did Not Beat the Odds” into two tiers — Within the Expected Range and Below the Expected Range.With this new framework, in addition to the 46 APS schools that Beat the Odds,26 were classified as “Within the Expected Range” and 16 were classified as“Below the Expected Range.” This means a total of 72 APS schools, or more than 80%, either Beat the Odds or performed Within the Expected Range.
You can learn more about this year’s Beat the Odds analysis on the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement’s website at https://gosa.georgia.gov/beating-odds-analysis.
Thank you for being engaged in the work of APS and for supporting our efforts to prepare all of our students for the choice-filled lives they deserve!
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