Board focuses on student achievement

The Aiken County Board of Education must continue to focus on assuring student success, said board member Keith Liner.

He and trustee Wesley Hightower attended a recent S.C. School Boards Association conference. Both said they came out of the work sessions with many of the same reactions.

At a board meeting Tuesday, Liner was pleased with a presentation by district administrators and principals on high school intervention strategies within the district for struggling students.

"We do focus on budgets and operations," Liner said, "but we should also dedicate time like tonight on student achievement. We need to see targets and track them. We're doing that, looking at how to tailor plans to help students who are facing challenges to achieve their fullest success."

Hightower said a presentation by Spartanburg District 3 Superintendent Dr. Jim Ray was quite impressive. That district uses MAP (Measure of Academic Progress) data to evaluate student and teacher performance, Liner said, much like the Aiken School District is doing.

"It's amazing to me to see the power of that tool in drilling down to individual students and identify their weaknesses," said Liner. "We had a Budget 101 workshop last fall. We should do the same thing for student achievement and show the district's dedication for that."

In other business, North Aiken Elementary School plans to submit an application to the S.C. Department of Education for a 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant for $200,000. The grant would be used to provide academic enrichment opportunities for its students.

* The board approved second reading of a policy revision related to graduation requirements. Currently, a senior must take at least four classes. However, that can discourage fifth-year seniors who may need fewer credits and could lead them to drop out of school. The revised policy would allow principals greater flexibility in scheduling such students.