Recently we learned that Alachua County’s graduation rate had topped the statewide rate for the first time in almost 20 years. Nearly 83 percent of local students graduated on time in 2017, compared to the state rate of just over 82 percent.
Five years ago, about 75 percent of our students were graduating on time, which means we’ve been making steady gains despite the fact that graduating from high school in Florida is tougher than it was in 2013. It’s a testament to the hard work of our teachers, administrators and staff and, most importantly, our students.
Of course, we won’t be satisfied until 100 percent of our students are graduating on time. Our district’s long-term strategic plan and my School Board-approved goals as superintendent for this academic year include graduation targets for all students and for our African-American students in particular. While their graduation rates have risen faster than our overall rate over the last five years, increasing from 57 percent to 68 percent, they still lag behind those of other students in our district.
Coincidentally, graduation rates were among the indicators shared just two days later during a community meeting on racial inequity in Alachua County. A just-completed study funded jointly by the school district, the University of Florida, Santa Fe College and other partners confirms that African-Americans face disproportionate challenges in our community, including higher poverty rates, higher unemployment, more juvenile arrests and less access to health care.
All of us who work in the district are well aware of these disparities — we see the effects every day in our schools. We also know that such challenges should not and must not prevent us from doing what we need to do to ensure that all students are successful.
That’s why we’ve established goals and strategies related to test scores, graduation rates, out-of-school suspensions, enrollment in advanced courses and other indicators not only for our total student population but also for African-American students and for those living in poverty. We want all of our students to make gains while also closing our achievement gap, which is far too big.
Some of those strategies are already producing results. During the last school year, for example, we implemented a number of new programs aimed at improving student behavior and reducing out-of-school suspensions. In just one year we saw a 17 percent reduction in out-of-school suspensions for white students and a 33 percent reduction for black students. That’s significant, because if students aren’t in school, they can’t learn. In fact, out-of-school suspensions were cited in the racial inequity study both by the researchers and the community members they interviewed as a significant problem.
The district has many, many people and programs in place to address the needs of students and their families, particularly our minority and disadvantaged students. They include our new Office of Education Equity and Outreach, which has already trained more than 700 teachers in creating culturally responsive classrooms and will have trained all of our teachers by the end of this school year. There’s also our System of Care, now in its third year, which provides a wide range of academic and social services to hundreds of local students and their families.
And of course, we constantly review what we are doing to see what we should expand, eliminate or do differently to make a positive difference.
At the last School Board meeting, I outlined just some of the strategies we have in place to raise student achievement, increase diversity among our employees and address our severe facilities needs. I’d like to encourage local citizens to review that presentation by visiting our website at www.sbac.edu and clicking on the “Superintendent’s Mid-Year Update” link. Additional information, including a list of what we’re doing to close the achievement gap, is also available on that site.
More importantly, I’d like to encourage local citizens to get involved. Community support is essential to student achievement. We’re always looking for people willing to mentor, volunteer and in other ways contribute their time and talents to our schools. For more information, you can call our Volunteer/Business Services Office at (352) 955-7250, ext. 252 or call a local school directly.
We need all citizens pulling together to make this a community that works for everyone. Alachua County Public Schools is committed to doing its part.
Karen D. Clarke is superintendent of Alachua County Public Schools.