Corridor schools are top performers

Seven corridor school districts are among the top 10 performers in the state. A Louisiana Department of Education report released this week shows Zachary Community School District ranks highest in the state with a score of 116.8. Other corridor schools in the Top 10 are St. Tammany Parish, which ranks No. 3 with a score of 109.6; Ascension Parish, which ranks No. 4 with a score of 105.9; Central Community Schools, which ranks No. 5 with a score of 105.8; Jefferson Davis, No. 8 with a score of 104.9; St. Charles Parish, No. 9 with a score of 104.9; and Orleans Parish, which ranks No. 10 with a score of 104.3. In a year when 80% of the schools jumped in testing performance, just one corridor school district — Livingston Parish — showed a decline. The No. 13-ranked district’s score dropped .2 points, to 101.3. The state set a decade-long performance goal of 100 in 1999, but fell short this year at 91. Still, Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek says: “In comparison to the last several years, where for the most part we saw marginal gains, a gain of nearly five points [4.7] reinforces our efforts and tells us that many superintendents are focusing on the right things and are moving in the right direction.” Ten years ago, the state only earned a 69.4 score. The results are based on various student-test scores, dropout and graduation rates and attendance. Although a 23.4-point gap exists between black and white students in English and a 28.1-point gap exists in math, the achievement gap has narrowed since the state launched its accountability system in 1999. In the last decade, the gap between black and white students narrowed by 10.3% in English and 9.8% in math, while the gap between financially disadvantaged students and their peers narrowed by 3.5% in English and 4.4% in math. For more details, click here.