Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

ACT Scores Rise At Nevada School District

By JOHN MILLER

Nevada High School's ACT test scores have been steadily climbing during the past five years.

This bit of information was presented to the Nevada School Board at its regular monthly meeting Thursday, Aug. 21. Superintendent Rick McAffee said there are 36 points possible in each subject area, and from 1992-'97 NHS students have increased their test scores by 0.9 percent, bringing the average score to 19.

"Success," he told the board, "is measured in tenths of a point." Additionally, McAffee said, those students in the vocational program have shown significant improvement on their ACTs as well. In the same five-year period the vocational students ACT scores went from 13.0 to 18.6.

This success, he said, has prompted several students in vocational classes to try their hand at college. "This shows the core courses we teach are moving them along," McAffee said.

Additionally, those students scoring 19 or better on the ACT tests don't have to take remedial courses when they go to college.

And, with school now underway, the principals say everything is going along well.

Natalie Sherwood, elementary principal, said there are seven children in the after school program, which has the capability of handling 23.

Hardy Herrington, NHS principal, said the school is again offering several courses from the University of Arkansas Community College at Hope (UACCH).

Students who take these classes and pass get college credit along with credit at NHS. In 1996, he said, NHS was second in Arkansas in students getting credit for college level courses.

Herrington said the district is working with community relationships, trying to communicate more with parents and the community at large. The idea, he said, is to get parents and the community more involved with the educational process.

The district has changed a rule which has led to complaints from some parents. The rule states no carbonated drinks can be taken into the cafetorium.

This is a state law the district has no choice but implement into its student handbooks. McAffee said a 12 ounce soft drink contains 12 spoons of sugar.

According to transportation supervisor Jim Cross, all bus driving positions are filled, though he is still looking for substitute drivers.

Cross lauded the maintenance crews for the work they completed during the summer. Along with making necessary repairs to the building and equipment, the maintenance personnel constructed a storage shed for janitorial supplies and equipment.

Board President Davis Benton said Cross and the maintenance crews saved the district several thousand dollars by doing the work themselves instead of the district having to contract it out.

Benton also pointed out McAffee had been elected to the Arkansas Public School Computer Network (APSCN) board -- a statewide position. He is the only superintendent from this cooperative holding a board position with APSCN.

McAffee said the credit should go to Nevada's first superintendent Barney Kizer, who volunteered the district for APSCN when Nevada schools first came into being.

Nevada has been involved with the APSCN program for nine years. McAffee said he was asked to be on the board because of the district's involvement and dedication to computer technology in the schools.

He said the district requires every student in grades K through eight to spend 20 minutes daily working on computers. This, he added, may be part of the reason the ACT scores have risen.

In other business, McAffee said the elementary enrollment is rising, but the high school lost four to six students. However, he expects NHS to pick up several students after the Labor Day holiday.

The budget, he told the board, has been set accordingly and readjusted to meet the current student numbers. The district will have about $40,000 more than last year, but all areas still had cutbacks in their budgets.

The board accepted the resignation of a lunchroom worker, reassigned Tracy Light from science to middle school math and conditionally hired Shannon Hall to teach at NHS.

The conditions for the hiring are her passing the criminal background check now required by law.

Four bus drivers were also hired to share routes, but they, too, must pass the background checks before their employment is permanent.

The district, in order to comply with regulations, has created the position of Alternative Learning Environment aide so the ALE instructor can have the release time required by the state.

McAffee reminded the board school elections will be Sept. 16, 1997, with the next regularly scheduled meeting being Sept. 18.