Heights Elementary Schools Closing Achievement Gap

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — The federal government has upgraded the status of four Cleveland Heights-University Heights elementary schools, recognizing improvement in each building's ability to educate under-performing students.

Boulevard, Fairfax, Noble, and Oxford elementary schools were all upgraded to "Independent" status, meaning the gap between students performing poorly and students performing at a high-level has closed. The upgrade came after the schools performed well on the Ohio State Report Cards for schools.

“We are proud of the work being done in our school buildings, and these new ‘Independent’ designations are a result of the efforts made by our principals, teachers, and staff,” said CH-UH Superintendent Talisa Dixon. “We are committed to teaching our students to master our own curriculum and providing the needed supports for every student to succeed. This is certainly a step in the right direction and something our school community should be proud of.”

All four elementary schools were previously classified as "Focus" schools. That designation means a school is contributing to the so-called "achievement gap" in a state — meaning there's a large gap between student performances. "Focus" schools can also contribute to sagging graduation rates. Gearity Elementary is still a "Focus" school.

The Ohio Department of Education defines a "Focus School" as:

1. Schools with subgroups performing at or below the performance of Priority schools; or
2. Schools’ subgroups performing in the bottom 30 percent and had low performance on the Gap Closing component.

Six of the seven elementary schools in the CHUH District are now "Independent" designated. Gearity is the only school still in "Focus" status.

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Photo from Renee Schiavone, Patch