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Citrus County High Schools got an early Holiday present with the release of the Federal Uniform Graduation (FUG) rates. The three high schools averaged an 88 percent FUG rate and 8.2 percentage points higher than 2014-15.
Crystal River High School’s FUG graduation rate climbed to 86.2 percent, an impressive 12.1 percentage points higher from 2014-15. Citrus High School’s FUG rate grow to 88.7 percent, a gain of 9.8 percentage points from 2014-15. Last of the three high schools, Lecanto High School’s FUG rate was the highest at 89.2 percent, and 2.7 percentage points higher from 2014-15.
Including all of Citrus County’s high school programs, WTC, CREST, Cypress Creek Detention Center, Renaissance Center and the Citrus MYcroSchool Charter School, Citrus rose to 79.0 percent, 1.6 percentage points greater from 2014-15.
As impressive as these scores are (and they are), these Federal Uniform Graduation high school rates do not include all the successes from all the District’s completion programs. If you combine all the District’s “Completion Rate”; those rates for this past year, are well over 90%. The Completion Rate includes these programs; district’s 4th-year graduates, G.E.D., 5th year graduates, Special Diploma, and Certificate of Completion (which replaced Special Diploma in 2015).
We are so proud of these successes and look forward to continuing to serve our college career bound students in these challenging times.
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Today the Florida’s 2015-16 Federal Uniform Graduation (FUG) rate data are released at http://bit.ly/22IVwOJ. The results showed that Florida’s statewide graduation rate has risen once again and that we are now at a 13-year high. This is reason to celebrate and I believe shows the positive work happing in Citrus County and Florida.
It is important to understand that the Federal Uniform Graduation rate is not the full graduation rate. It only gives the rate for students that graduated in 4-years with a standard Florida high school diploma. It does not include students that graduated in the summer (some a few days after graduation), G.E.D., vocational transfer students, or special diploma graduates.
Florida’s statewide graduation rate climbed to 80.7 percent, an increase of 21.5 percentage points since 2003-04 and 2.8 percentage points over last year. Citrus rose to 79.0 and 1.6 percentage points from 2014-15. Citrus average rate includes our three public high schools, WTC, CREST, Cypress Creek Detention Center, Renaissance Center and the Citrus MYcroSchool Charter School.
Crystal River High School’s FUG graduation rate climbed to 86.2 percent, an impressive 12.1 percentage points higher from 2014-15. Citrus High School’s FUG rate grow to 88.7 percent, a gain of 9.8 percentage points from 2014-15. Last of the three high schools, Lecanto High School’s FUG rate was the highest at 89.2 percent, and 2.7 percentage points higher from 2014-15.
Commissioner of Education Pam Stewart said, “Today’s news is cause for celebration! I am proud of Florida’s students for their outstanding achievement, even as the bar has been steadily raised.”
What I am even more proud of is our District’s programs “Completion Rate”. As a District, and School Board, we do not simply focus on the Federal Uniform Graduation data– we look at the successful completion rate of all our students. If you combine all of those rates for this past year, it was over 90% and which includes; district graduates for the year, G.E.D., 5th year graduates, Special Diploma, and Certificate of Completion (which replaced Special Diploma in 2015).
These programs represent all of our students’ completion work and is the true testament of the successes in our community and with our students.
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This past Saturday Citrus Springs Middle School Student Council with their sponsor Mrs. Holland visited Citrus Health & Rehab Nursing Home in Inverness where they sang carols, visited with residents, delivered Christmas cards, and handed out presents they and Mrs. Holland purchased. The students and residents felt equally blessed by the event.
Thank you to Mrs. Holland, for going the extra mile and making it possible for these students to bring some joy to our elderly community this holiday season!
WAY TO GO Falcons!
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The Pine Street Pub (108 N. Pine Ave., Inverness) will host the third annual Foundation Fest, a party to benefit the Citrus County Education Foundation (CCEF) from 6 to 11 p.m. Friday, Dec. 16.
Community leaders will be the servers for the night, all competing to raise the most tips. The event will also feature food, a silent auction (perhaps last-minute Christmas gifts) and a Battle of the Band Teachers as local teachers compete for program funding. Fest-goers help decide the battle champ, but must attend to vote. The winning school will take home $1,000 for their music program.
A $5 cover will be charged at the door. Citrus County School District teachers and staff get in free with school ID. All tips, cover charges, silent auction proceeds and a portion of food sales will be donated to CCEF to fund programs supporting Citrus County Schools.
CCEF will collect silent auction items through Thursday, Dec. 15.
To support the cause and promote an organization or business, consider making a silent auction donation. A CCEF rep will come to pick up any donated items and/or gift certificates.
Donors will be recognized on the CCEF website, in social media and at the event. All donations are greatly appreciated and tax deductible.
For more information or to make a silent auction donation, contact CCEF Executive Director Shaunda Burdette at 352-726-1931, ext. 2240, or BurdetteS@citrus.k12.fl.us. More information is also available at www.citruseducation.org and facebook.com/citruseducation.
Created in 1988, CCEF is a nonprofit corporation whose sole mission is to support public, prekindergarten through 12th grade, education in Citrus County. CCEF-supported programs include: classroom mini-grants for all grade levels; scholarships for aspiring teachers and high school seniors; AVID; Camp Citrus and Camp Invention; SAEC mini-grants; school-to-work and STEM programs including Aquaculture and MakerSpace; science fairs and math field days; Special Olympics; student career days and Pathways to Success; district support for Fine Arts including sponsorship of the Festival of the Arts student zone, All County Chorus and elementary school plays; Successmaker; intensive reading programs; student health, safety and leadership programs including Link, Youth Leadership Citrus and onsite student resource rooms; web-based curricula and classroom technology enhancements including Aleks, BrainPOP, Gizmos, Teach Town, 3D printers and technology carts and First Library-CCEF’s literacy initiative supporting the county’s pre-K and kindergarten students.
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Recently U.S. News & World Report published an excellent article on why it is misleading to use these international test result comparisons and conclude that the U.S. public school system failing. “…there are dangers in believing that PISA scores can be raised by simply adopting the practices of the high-performing countries.”
The publication goes on to say, “Despite the stratospheric results for Chinese students in PISA 2012, for example, students sent by Chinese families to American high schools ballooned 50-fold from 2006 to 2014. Perhaps we should ask the families of these students why the highest test results in the world were not adequate to keep their students in Chinese schools. Their insights may better assist in understanding the strengths and challenges of PISA.”
I encourage you to read this article – http://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2016-11-30/pisa-2015-wont-provide-the-answers-to-educational-excellence
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