Dade/Davis Elementary Test Scores Are On An Upward Trajectory

By LYDIA BERGLAR
News Editor

Before the Dade County Board of Education’s regularly scheduled meeting on Jan. 27, the board recapped the information about the HB 581 exemption and voted to opt out of the exemption. No citizens spoke at the hearing.

During the hearing, Jennifer Hartline (Sand Mountain representative) said, “[The state has] never, historically, swung anything to be a benefit to Dade County.”

Steve Forester (Lookout Mountain representative) also pointed out, “Is the new exemption just going to be a benefit for that one year, and after that, as inflation rises sharply, is it going to [not be a benefit for the taxpayer] because once you come out of the [existing homestead] freeze you can’t go back into that?”

At the beginning of the regular meeting, the board elected a new chair and vice chair to serve two-year terms. Johnny Warren (Trenton representative) and Hartline quickly nominated Jayne Griffin (At-Large representative) to chair the board, and Jason Crisp (North Dade representative) and Hartline quickly nominated Warren for the vice chair role. All voted in favor of these nominations.

Then, Eileen Galang, a representative from Northwest Georgia Regional Education Service Agency (RESA), recognized Dade’s schools for their Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) programs. PBIS is not used in every school in Georgia, but it is beginning to spread throughout the state.

Davis Elementary School and Dade County High School (DCHS) earned the second highest out of three levels of PBIS accreditation, called “Operational,” while Dade Elementary School (DES) and Dade Middle School (DMS) earned the first level, called “Emerging.”

During the facilities update, Josh Ingle (superintendent) noted that the hitting facility at DCHS will be completed by April 15, if not earlier, and the Davis construction will also be completed in early April.

Architect Kenneth Harless then reported on foundation issues at DMS and DCHS. Noting that they’ve kept an eye on both schools for the last several years, Harless said, “It’s not a safety issue. Now, if you let it go for a long time, it’ll become a safety issue, but right now, it’s just some settlement.”

At the middle school, retainer walls were used during the original construction, but Harless said that the ground wasn’t compacted well before the footing was poured. “This happens a lot, especially before standardized inspections were required.”

As the dirt has settled, slabs in the middle school have begun to crack and are causing cracks in the walls. Harless explained that the solution is to install helical piers that can each support 30,000 pounds. These will be installed beneath the outer walls and will be anchored to the foundation. The same thing will be done under interior walls, but it will involve cutting through the floor and then repairing the floor once installed.

Griffin asked if damage can be expected to show up in other parts of the building in the future, but Harless said enough time has passed that we’ve seen the worst of the settling, and the helical piers are a permanent fix.

At the high school, the architect team found settlement in the north-facing wing nearest the parking lot (E Hall). Harless said the footing rotated as it settled, so the walls have horizontal gaps. The architects plan to add reinforcement to the walls as well as use the helical pier fix.

Both of these repairs can be done over the summer and can be lumped into one request for proposal (RFP). The board plans to hear an estimated budget at the next meeting.

Both elementary school principals then gave updates on their schools, highlighting goals and significant test score improvements.

Melissa Valtierra at DES reported that the goals are to implement the HMH (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) Core Reading Program to improve reading performance; implement HLPs (High-Leverage Practices) to improve math performance; and increase the attendance percentage to 95 percent or higher in every grade.

Valtierra then reported encouraging improvements in the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) and Georgia Milestones scores from the end of 2023 to the end of 2024. Here are the math scores:

• MAP 2023: 50 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2023: 38 percent projected to be at proficient level or higher
• MAP 2024: 56 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2024: 39 percent projected to be at proficient level or higher

Here are the reading scores:

• MAP 2023: 49 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2023: 37 percent projected to be at proficient level or higher
• MAP 2024: 56 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2024: 40 percent projected to be at proficient level or higher

Here are the science scores (only fifth graders are tested in this area):

• MAP 2023: 54 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2023: not given
• MAP 2024: 62 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2024: not given

Valtierra discussed tactics to improve attendance. Griffin noted the low attendance in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and first grade, asking, “Do you think parents are not seeing attendance in those grades as being important?”

Valtierra said, “I think there just needs to be a mindset change. If students are not in the classroom every day, they are missing something integral, because the curriculum keeps on moving.”

Charity Barton also reported encouraging improvements at Davis in MAP Milestones scores. Here are the math scores:

• MAP 2023: 68 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2023: 56.5 percent projected to be at proficient level or higher
• MAP 2024: 74 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2024: not given

Here are the reading scores:

• MAP 2023: 65 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2023: 47 percent projected to be at proficient level or higher
• MAP 2024: 73 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2024: not given

Here are the science scores (only fifth graders are tested in this area):

• MAP 2023: 61 percent scored at 50th percentile or better
• Milestones 2023: 47.7 percent projected to be at proficient level or higher
• MAP 2024: not given
• Milestones 2024: not given

Of attendance, Barton noted that one Davis student has already missed 30 percent of this school year. She said, “Here’s the thing: They are not a truancy issue, necessarily, because they could have doctors’ notes and still miss a third of the year, so we have to figure out what is the thing that will help support the family.”

Crisp asked what the main factor is that keeps kids out of school. Barton answered that kids often say they don’t feel good, so parents simply let them skip school. She noted that adults go to work when they feel under the weather, so she encourages parents, “Send them with the sniffles.”

She said anxiety is probably the second biggest thing that keeps kids home, but it often presents through physical symptoms like stomach aches or headaches.

During Public Input, Jack McNew noted that one of the grades the principals touched on when reporting test scores was third grade. He then explained that his career experience has mostly been in Tennessee, and one time, he spoke with a man who worked on designing a prison in Tennessee.

In this conversation, McNew learned, “One of the criteria they look at to figure out what size a facility they’re going to need is the percentage of third graders that are not performing at the standard.”

Filled with emotion, he concluded, “Looks to me like you guys are doing great.”

The board then approved an amendment to the school calendar to attempt to make up for instructional time lost to weather. Originally, March 27 was a half day and parent/teacher conference day, and March 28 was an in-service day. Now, the 27th is a regular full day, with the parent/teacher day moved to the 28th.

Lastly, the board approved the purchase of two new refrigerators (surplusing a broken one) and three new milk coolers for the elementary schools, as well as surplusing two old buses that have been replaced due to expensive repair costs.

The personnel report is as follows:

• Retirement: Leah Bible
• Resignations: Whitney Day, Courtney Lewis, Tammy Love, Jackie Tinker, Alan Leverette
• Hires: Kendra Kanady, Kelly Seiter, Austin Sanders, Abby Guffey, Kearstyn Turner
• Substitute Teachers: Benjamin Wheeler, Dianne Meeks
• Voluntary Transfer: Mariah Orton, Amy Blevins