Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education Accountability topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Guilford County Schools reports gains in literacy and math, posts record 92.2% graduation rate; leaders warn absenteeism and funding remain risks
Summary
Superintendent Whitney Oakley and district leaders presented an accountability report for 2023–24 showing double‑digit early literacy gains, widespread math proficiency improvements, and a record 92.2% graduation rate. Officials warned that chronic absenteeism, staffing shortages and the impending end of ESSER funds threaten continued progress and urged support for a local sales‑tax referendum to bolster pay.
Superintendent Whitney Oakley and district leaders told the Guilford County Board of Education that Guilford County Schools made measurable academic gains in 2023–24 but still faces challenges from chronic absenteeism and funding shortfalls.
“77 schools increased their performance composites compared to the 22‑23 school year,” Dr. Stevens said as she opened the district’s accountability briefing, noting math proficiency rose in grades 3–8 for nearly every student group and several End‑of‑Course exams also improved. Oakley highlighted that the district’s four‑year cohort graduation rate reached 92.2%, a district record.
District leaders attributed improvements to targeted recovery programs. Dr. Wells described the district’s approach as based on “three principles: expanding learning time, high‑dosage tutoring, acceleration not remediation,” and said GCS tripled the number of students served by high‑dosage tutoring to more than 17,000 and provided almost half a million tutoring sessions over the last two years.
Officials emphasized that some gains depend on continued funding. Dr. Stevens warned the sunsetting of ESSER federal relief will force the district to identify ways to sustain supports that have aided progress. Oakley and other board members pointed to a local sales‑tax referendum on the fall ballot — described in the meeting as a quarter‑cent increase (0.25%), roughly 5 cents on a $20 purchase — that county officials estimate could generate about $25 million a year to boost pay for teachers and frontline staff.
Attendance remained a central concern. Presenters said chronic absenteeism has declined from its pandemic peak but remains high, with roughly one in three students missing 10 or more days a year. Dr. Wells noted research tying participation in learning hubs and tutoring to higher graduation probabilities — the presentation cited a 29% increased likelihood of graduating for students who attended learning hubs — and Oakley stressed the need to prioritize transportation and staffing to expand access.
Board members asked for operational details about the programs: how high‑dosage tutoring differs from learning hubs (tutoring typically occurs three to five times weekly for sessions longer than 20 minutes and is curriculum‑aligned; learning hubs are flexible evening offerings at many high schools), material sourcing, and cost. Oakley said the district budgeted roughly $1.6 million to operate learning hubs two days a week in comprehensive high schools this year but cautioned that scale and transportation remain limiting factors.
The meeting closed with a reminder that the board will take a deeper look at student‑group outcomes at a work session on Sept. 24 and that sustaining gains will require addressing staffing shortages, attendance, and renewable funding.
The accountability presentation preceded several hours of board discussion and public comment; a work session later this month is scheduled to examine subgroup data in more detail.
