Superintendent of Schools Dr. Gregory C. Hutchings, Jr. was honored as an outstanding leader in education last week for his commitment to enhancing educational and economic opportunities for African Americans and other minorities.
Dr. Hutchings was recognized for his commitment to creating opportunities for youth through mentoring and youth development programs and for serving as a trusted advisor and role model for youth.
Throughout his career, Dr. Hutchings has worked tirelessly to close the achievement gap in education and is already bringing that commitment to Alexandria. Testing data for ACPS already shows that minority students outperform their counterparts in many schools and subject areas.
This year, fourteen schools within ACPS are fully accredited for the 2018-19 school year, including William Ramsay Elementary School and Francis C. Hammond Middle School. Both of these schools have high numbers of students who are socio-economically disadvantaged.
Our socio-economically disadvantaged students and in some cases our English Learner students are clearly outperforming their counterparts. You only have to look to Cora Kelly or Patrick Henry or Francis C. Hammond to see examples of this. Poverty simply cannot be used as an excuse for results. Success is about putting the right strategies in place,” Dr. Hutchings said.
Despite a free and reduced price school meal rate of 86 percent and rising, Cora Kelly School for Math, Science and Technology has seen sustained strong academic performance for all of its students for many years. Reading and math pass rates for English Learners have remained consistently at 96 and 95 percent, respectively, in the past three years.
Patrick Henry School has also been fully accredited for the past four years despite 79 percent of students being eligible for free and reduced price school meals. The school attributes its success to setting high expectations and tailoring instructional practices to meet the needs of students as individuals.
Francis C. Hammond Middle School is outperforming the division by 20 percent in Algebra I, despite 81 percent of its students being eligible for free and reduced price school meals. According to the School Quality Profile, Hammond also has an overall score of 89 percent in social studies and is outperforming the division by 15 percent. The data is exceptionally high for Black students (91 percent), Hispanic students (87 percent), economically disadvantaged students (89 percent) and English Learners (81 percent).
We’re working to continue and expand positive trends like this throughout the vision and to ensure that every student has the opportunities needed to help them succeed in school and in life.