Despite being ranked as a low-performing district by the North Carolina Department of Instruction the school, Halifax County Schools says it has demonstrated significant progress in key areas that underscore the district's commitment to progress and excellence.
The latest data report indicates that seven out of 11 schools within the Halifax County School District have met or exceeded growth expectations.
“The data reveals notable improvements across multiple grade levels, particularly in core subjects such as mathematics, reading, and science,” the school system said. “These advancements reflect the district’s dedication to enhancing student learning outcomes.”
Targeted initiatives have contributed to the positive trends observed in the data.
These include specialized academic support, graduation support, professional development for educators, principal coaching and enhanced resources aimed at addressing the needs of students.
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The Halifax County Schools data reflects the statewide trend of incremental gains as North Carolina’s public schools try to return to achievement levels before the challenges presented by the COVID pandemic.
Before the pandemic, nine out of 10 schools within the Halifax County School District met or exceeded growth expectations.
Upon the outbreak, DPI suspended testing for the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years.
As testing resumed, school districts had to navigate the reintegration of standardized assessments while addressing the educational gaps that developed during the remote learning phase.
Confronting the issue of learning loss, Halifax County School District has maintained growth, the school system. “However, schools can meet growth expectations and still be classified as low performing.”
A low-performing school is defined by a school performance grade of D or F, and a growth status of Met or Not Met.
A school district with more than 50 percent of schools identified as low performing is then considered a low performing school district.
“While our district is still classified as low performing, we are encouraged by the progress demonstrated in these recent reports,” Superintendent Eric Cunningham said. “The significant strides made by several of our schools are a testament to the hard work of our students, educators, and community.”
Cunningham said, “Our focus remains on building on these successes and addressing the areas where further improvement is needed.”
Said the superintendent: “While the progress is promising, Halifax County Schools’ commitment to achieving excellence remains steadfast as we acknowledge that additional work is necessary to meet our long-term educational goals.”
Across the state, students continued to see gains in most grades and subjects, according to the 2023-24 state test results presented to the State Board of Education.
Schools also showed progress on accountability measures.
For the second year in a row, North Carolina students performed well in math, seeing an increase in students performing at both college-and-career readiness and grade-level proficiency in all grades from third to eighth, as well as in both NC Math 1 offerings.
For students achieving grade-level proficiency in math, these areas saw increases up to 2.1 percentage points from the 2022-23 school year. There was a decrease in NC Math 3 scores, from 58.3 percent to 57.6 percent this year.
School Performance grades continue to show a steady increase of schools earning an A, B or C, while the number of schools earning a D or F declined nearly two percentage points. The number of schools exceeding or meeting growth increased as well. Approximately 72.5 percent of schools met or exceeded growth in 2023-24, compared to 72.3 percent in 2022-23 and up from 69.6 percent in 2021-22.
English Language Learners saw significant gains as well. There has been a steady increase in the percentage of students meeting progress targets or exiting English learner status over the past three years. In 2021-22, the percentage was 21.1, which increased to 24.9 in 2022-23 and then to 27.3 in 2023-24. In comparison to last year and when reported separately, students exiting the program grew by nearly half a percentage point, and those meeting annual progress grew by nearly two percentage points.
Graduation rates are also on the rise. The state’s four-year cohort graduation rate increased slightly to 86.9 percent, from 86.5 percent in 2022-23.
