H-BC top performing school in Minnesota

By Lexi MooreStandard & Poor’s, an independent investment research, data, and valuations provider, conducted an analysis of 332 school districts in Minnesota. The Hills-Beaver Creek School District received the highest score given for reading and math proficiency over the course of two consecutive years, 2001-02 and 2002-03.H-BC Elementary Principal Todd Holthaus presented the data to the school board Monday night. "Our students were the highest," he said. "We received a 98.9 percent. We set the bar for the other schools."Superintendent David Deragisch said he was excited about the study. "This is a reflection, not only of our students and staff, but our parents too," Deragisch said. "We are all in this together."Board member Gary Esselink asked Deragisch to deliver the following message to the graduating seniors during their commencement ceremony. "This achievement is a culmination of your hard work and efforts."H-BC was the leader among the 332 school districts in Minnesota that had sufficient data for analysis. Only 22 school districts, or 6.6 percent, were mentioned for outperforming demographically similar school districts in reading and math proficiency. These "outperforming" school districts are diverse, serving student populations in 2002-03 that range from 30.2 to 60.3 percent economically disadvantaged, while achieving average proficiency rates in reading and math that range from 80.3 to 98.9 percent. The 98.9-percent score was given to H-BC.Standard and Poor’s used three fundamental criteria to identify outperforming school districts:
School districts must achieve higher levels of student proficiency than peers. Districts must report higher percentages of students that score above state standards on reading and math tests than other school districts that serve similar proportions of economically disadvantaged students.
School districts must perform at a level that significantly exceeds
School districts must perform consistently. The first two criteria must be met in performance for at least two consecutive years.Standard and Poor’s believes that highlighting Minnesota’s 22 outperforming school districts is important because it may shed light on effective strategies and "best practices" that can help lower performing "peers" make needed improvements necessary to impact student achievement.