East Chicago Central reports gains in CTE, dual-credit and select tests as attendance lags

Central High School administrators told the School City of East Chicago Board of School Trustees on May 13 that the school has seen measurable growth in career and technical education participation and some standardized-test benchmarks even as monthly attendance remains below district targets.

"Our goal here at East Chicago Central for all our students is to be college, career, and military ready," Marin Lee, director of CTE and adult education, told the board during a school presentation. Lee and other Central staff detailed test results, credentialing and enrollment data and described programs intended to raise graduation and postsecondary readiness rates.

Administrators said attendance has remained under the district goal. "We are supposed to be at 95% attendance," an attendance coordinator said, and reported month-to-month figures that dropped as low as 88% in January and were around 91% in April and May as finals approached. The board heard that school closures and the election period contributed to the January decline.

School leaders presented test and program data. Central reported that 4% of juniors met both SAT benchmarks this year, up from 3% in 2024; math-only benchmark attainment rose from 3% to 5%; evidence-based reading and writing rose from 26% to 31%; and the iLearn biology ECA pass rate edged from 23% to 24%. The ASVAB vocational aptitude results climbed from an average 18.8% meeting the 31 benchmark last year to 33.35% this year, administrators said.

Career and technical education (CTE) figures showed enrollment growth from roughly 990 enrollments last year to about 1,152 this year (administrators noted that a single student may be enrolled in multiple CTE classes). Central offers 12 CTE pathways. Administrators said concentrator status—students earning a C or better in the three required pathway courses—rose from about 45% of the graduating cohort in 2023 to 55% in 2024, with a projection of 67% if current students complete coursework and maintain grades.

Concurrent- and dual-enrollment opportunities grew as well. Administrators reported roughly 1,418 postsecondary credits pending through partnerships with Purdue Northwest, Ivy Tech, Vincennes University and Indiana University Bloomington and said those credits had saved families an estimated $327,034 this school year (figure described as pending/final upon completion of semester coursework and exams).

The school also cited growth in work-based learning—students earning required hours at partner sites—and increases in industry-recognized credentials and dual-credit credentials, both of which count toward graduation pathway requirements under state rules. "We saw about a 14% increase" in postsecondary credits within CTE pathways across recent years, a CTE staff member said.

Administrators highlighted other student supports and events: a prevention curriculum delivered to 395 students called "Too Good for Drugs," which staff described as a multi-lesson program followed by a school celebration; 41 students qualifying for the National Technical Honor Society and 15 for the National Honor Society; and scholarship awards totaling more than $500,000 reported by the district foundation.

Trustees asked questions about expanding CTE earlier in students' coursework. Trustee Smith urged leaders to expand offerings at the middle-school level; staff replied Central already offers two middle-school CTE-for-credit courses—Preparing for College and Careers and a computer science course—and that students can earn high-school credits in those classes.

Board members praised the students, staff and community partners recognized during the presentation. The district indicated it will continue to monitor attendance trends and program completion as finals and end-of-year data are finalized.

The presentation and Q&A took about the first portion of the May 13 meeting; board members then moved on to administrative and business items on the agenda.