Forrest City reports statewide growth gains; junior high earns high-growth award and $50-per-student grant

District academic leaders told the Forrest City School District Board of Education that new state growth metrics show the district met or exceeded expected student growth in English language arts, mathematics and science for grades 3 and up.

Superintendent's staff explained the state now reports growth as a score centered on zero: a score of 0 means students met expected growth, positive values indicate growth above expectations and negative values indicate growth below expectations. Using that metric, district staff said the Forrest City district average growth score across tested content areas was 0.06; the state average reported in the presentation was about -0.003 in the comparable summary table shown to the board. For mathematics the district average reported was about 0.10 while the state average cited in the presentation was about 0.003. For science the district average cited was about 0.04; the state figure cited was about 0.002. District staff said these figures come from the Arkansas Department of Education accountability reports.

The presentation highlighted several school- and teacher-level top performers. District staff singled out teachers by name for positive growth scores at Seward Elementary, Lincoln Academy and the junior high. The junior high received a high-growth award from an external reviewer (the Office of Education Policy) and, as part of that award, district staff told the board the junior high will receive $50 per student to be allocated by a school committee (a staff member on the dais estimated the award to total about $13,000 for the school based on the student count).

Officials explained the growth measure is newly emphasized in state accountability (the district said growth now carries a higher weight than previously), and that sustained positive growth can affect district recognition and funding. Presenters also noted some content areas and grade-level cohorts still require additional focus: the high school's algebra, geometry and biology content areas were identified as areas needing extra support, and the district said it does not currently have a coach assigned to some high-school content areas.

Why it matters

The growth scores affect district accountability and can translate into awards and targeted funding for schools that outperform expectations. The junior high's award includes discretionary funds to be spent locally by a school committee, and district leaders said growth-weighting changes at the state level increase the significance of these outcomes.

Speakers and sourcing

The academic presentation and the data excerpts cited in the meeting came from district academic staff using Arkansas Department of Education published accountability growth reports and a synopsis by the Office of Education Policy. Teachers and school leaders referenced in the presentation include Miss Winford, Mr. Whitby and Mr. Garner as noted by district staff during the recognition portion of the report.

Details & context

- District average growth (all tested areas cited by presenters): 0.06 (district value reported in presentation). - State average figures cited in the presentation: roughly -0.003 (ELA summary cited), 0.003 (math) and 0.002 (science). - Junior high award: district staff reported the school qualified in a high-growth band (top 6'0% in state ranking according to the presentation) and will receive a per-student award the school committee will allocate; staff estimated about $13,000 for the junior high based on its enrollment. - Teacher recognitions: staff named several teachers with high growth scores (Miss Winford, Mr. Whitby, Mr. Garner) during the presentation.

What the presentation did not specify

The presentation cited ADE data but did not provide the raw score tables for every grade/content cell in the public transcript; the board packet handed out at the meeting includes the district's slide set and the district noted the data were copied from the state accountability site.

Next steps

District staff said they will continue to monitor targeted content areas at the high school, pursue coaching supports where needed, and work with school leadership on how to allocate the junior high award funds through a teacher/staff/student/parent committee.

(Transcript evidence: academic presentation and discussion recorded in the superintendent's report.)