Sept. 12, 2019 -- The Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District, while recognizing areas of continued, necessary focus, is showing notable progress in the latest Ohio state report card data released Thursday.

As a whole, the District has made improvements on the Gap Closing component, Graduation Rate, K-3 Literacy, and Career and Technical Education.

“While we’re pleased to see some upward trends on the report card, and recognize that we still have areas in which we must apply further efforts for the sake of our students’ success, this report card does not tell our complete story,” said CH-UH Superintendent Elizabeth Kirby.

“The report card is one measure of our district; it is a measure of one moment in time for our students. And it is not a holistic determination of our district’s value to students and families. Our community knows this. Our graduates know this. I believe even the state knows this, too,” Kirby added.

Gap Closing
Six schools in the District, including four elementary schools and both middle schools, received a letter grade of “B” on the Gap Closing component. This component shows how well schools are meeting the performance expectations for the most vulnerable populations of students in the areas of English language arts, math, and graduation. The District earned an improved overall grade of “C”. The EL Gap Closing score was a perfect 100 for this year.

Graduation Rate
Heights High School had a four-year graduation rate of 86.6% for students who entered the 9th grade in the 2014-2015 school year and graduated in 2018. This is an improvement from last year’s rate of 84.9%. The five-year graduation rate also held steady at nearly 91.0%. The five-year rate earned the high school a “B” on the report card, while the four-year rate was a “C”.

“We are steadily increasing our 4-year graduation rate, ticking up toward our strategic plan goal of 90% by 2020,” Kirby said. “We have already met our 5-year goal of 90%, and I’m excited to see that holding steady.”

K-3 Literacy
This component looks at K-3 students who are considered “not on track” according to reading tests, and assesses their progress over a year. The District’s grade moved up a letter grade to a “C” due to the schools’ continued focus on early learning and literacy. 

Career and Technical Education
CH-UH’s career prep consortium, Heights Career Tech, once again received all A’s for its Graduation Rate (4-year and 5-year) and Post Program Placement Outcomes.

Heights High offers Career and Technical Education courses through a five-district consortium that includes Cleveland Heights, Bedford, Maple Heights, Shaker Heights, and Warrensville Heights. Students have the opportunity to earn professional certifications, industry-recognized credentials, and college credit in 23 unique pathways--many of which are housed on the Heights High campus.

Individual Building Grade Improvements
Monticello Middle School improved in every single graded component: Achievement, Progress, and Gap Closing. Most notably, Gap Closing earned a “B” for this year, compared to last year’s failing grade.

Roxboro Middle School improved its overall letter grade to a “C”. Like Monticello, Gap Closing jumped to a “B”. The school’s Gifted grade, within the Progress component, is an “A”.

Boulevard Elementary School has improved a full letter grade to a “C,” largely due to improvement in the Progress component, which received an “A”. Noble Elementary School also ranked up to an overall “C” due to improvements in Gap Closing.

Heights High School is showing improvements in gifted progress and for students in the lowest 20%. The school also shows upticks on several measures in the Prepared for Success Component, including:

-Percentage of students taking the SAT exam,
-Percentage of students receiving remediation free scores on the SAT exam,
-Advanced Placement (AP) participation, and
-Dual Enrollment Credit.

“I’m proud of the hard work and determination put forth by our educators, support staff, administrators, and most importantly, our students,” Kirby said. “Our teachers have a commitment to student achievement that is unrivaled, unwavering, and truly inspiring. We will continue to build on these successes using the strategic plan as our guide.”

The Board of Education will continue their ongoing discussions on state test scores and other standardized measures at board meetings. Future work sessions will focus on the data and the work the District is doing to improve academic measures.