Highland Tops Rankings of Nolan County Schools

Roscoe Collegiate High School received a Recognized ranking.

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has released its school accountability ratings for 2011 and rated Highland School as Exemplary, the highest possible rating.  Roscoe High School was close behind with a Recognized rating, the second highest. 

Roscoe Elementary received an Academically Acceptable rating but came within a single percentage point in one category of maintaining its Recognized level of 2010.* 

Here are the TEA ratings for Nolan County schools: 

1.  Exemplary – Highland School

2.  Recognized
          Roscoe Collegiate High School
          Sweetwater Intermediate School
          Sweetwater East Ridge Elementary
          Sweetwater Southeast Elementary

3.  Academically Acceptable
          Roscoe Elementary School
          Blackwell School
          Sweetwater Middle School

4.  Academically Unacceptable – Sweetwater High School

Highland School and Roscoe High maintained their rankings from last year, but all the others dropped a level, primarily because of the new, tougher standards implemented this year. 

Statewide, the number of Academically Unacceptable rankings increased by over 400% from 2010, while the number of Exemplary schools fell by over half.   

Unfortunately, with the $4.8 billion cut in state education funding for the next two years, Texas schools will have a tough time just maintaining their current academic levels and an extra tough time in making any improvements.

For details, see the related article in Sunday’s Abilene Reporter-News by clicking here, and the complete TEA Accountability Report by clicking here.

*At least 15% of a school’s economically disadvantaged students had to make a Commended ranking (roughly equivalent to an A) on the test for the school to achieve a Recognized rating, and only 14% of Roscoe Elementary’s did.

--o--

PEARLAND WOMAN KILLED IN CAR ROLLOVER NEAR WASTELLA

Cynthia Walsh Holman, 52, from Pearland was killed when she lost control of her 2008 Chevrolet HHR on US 84 at 11:57am on Sunday.  She was driving toward Roscoe when her vehicle reportedly went off the road into the median.  She then overcorrected, causing the vehicle to roll and wind up in a cotton field.  She was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.  

--o--

HEAT AND DROUGHT CONTINUE

The weather remained relentlessly hot and dry as it has for months.  High temperatures once again typically topped the 100° mark with the high for the week yesterday’s 105°F.  Lows were in the high 70°s.

There was actually a little rainfall last Friday when an afternoon shower briefly passed through.  Unfortunately, however, precipitation was minimal.  Lyndall Underwood recorded three-hundredths of an inch on the western end of town while other locales got as much as a tenth of an inch—and still others nothing at all.

The forecast for the coming week calls for more hot, dry weather with clear skies and highs between 101° and 104°.