On December 1, Griffin-Spalding County School System (GSCS) learned that the Governor’s Office of Student Acheivment (GOSA) released a list including some schools in our district that are elligible for the Georgia Promise Scholarship. The Georgia Promise Scholarship provides eligible students with the opportunity to use public funds for non-public education expenses including k-12 private school tuition, curriculum materials and tutoring services.
This list of eligible schools was compiled by averaging the single score calculations from the 2023 and 2024 academic years, based on the College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI). The CCRPI is comprised of “content mastery” (student scores on the statewide Milestones assessment intended to help determine if students are achieving at the level necessary to be prepared for the next level), “progress” (the level of growth students are demonstrating in English language arts, mathematics and how well English learning are progressing toward English language proficiency), “closing gaps” measuring how well sub groups are meeting their annual improvement targets), “readiness” (whether students are prepared for the next level or college/ career based on their attendance, reading level and achievement in world language, computer science, fine arts and career (CTAE) classes) and the high school “graduation rate” (measuring the percentage of students in a cohort that graduate in four years or five years).
GSCS Superintendent Dr. Keith Simmons said, “While schools within our district are included and by their inclusion are designated as low performing, it is important to note that this is only a snapshot of an evolving story. This designation does not reflect the full extent of the progress or success taking place within these schools. Nor does it include all schools in the state, as charter schools and private schools are not included.”
“An example of this list not revealing the full picture of school success is evidenced by CCRPI data for all state schools released today by the GaDOE. This data shows that all GSCS schools made numerous significant improvements and the district overall improved in eight of the 13 components. In November three of our schools were designated as Math Leaders in the state by State School Superintendent Richard Wood. Griffin High School, Carver Road Middle School and Jackson Road Elementary received this recognition due to their high-level math improvements. Last school year, State Superintendent Woods also recognized Jordan Hill Elementary, Atkinson Elementary and Crescent Elementary as Literacy Leaders in the state for their high-level literacy gains. Griffin High School was also recognized by GaDOE as an Advanced Placement (AP) Expansion School for their growth of more than 25 percent in AP achievement. Ironically, many of these schools designated as state leaders were included on the Georgia Promise Scholarship list,” stated Superintendent Simmons.
Superintendent Simmons added, “This is a reminder that state generated lists that offer information about school and student performance are not always accompanied with the information that stakeholders need to achieve clear understanding. We acknowledge the need for continual improvement and we are actively building on current successes to advance student learning outcomes. We appreciate our teachers, leaders and learners for the incredible work that they do.”
For more information on the Georgia Promise Schools Act, please contact the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement https://gosa.georgia.gov/georgia-promise-scholarship-sb233-school-list.