A Call To Arms To Improve Performance Label

I hope you've read the front page article in the November 26 issue of The Carthaginian about our local schools. We at SLE have known for quite some time that the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) would be labeling us as a "Failing" school, but we were not permitted to discuss it publically until now. So, let's start discussing it.


As the article stated, and as your children's teachers have been telling you, the new accountability model that has been put into place by the MDE has truly raised the bar for what we must reach to be labeled "successful." Gone are the Levels 1 through 5. They are replaced by seven categories. Here they are from highest to lowest:

Star School

High Performing

Successful

Academic Watch

Low-Performing School

At Risk of Failing

Failing

As the article stated, SLE, SLHS, and TAC are labeled as "Failing" schools. I promise you that this is not a reflection of our school's true worth. This does not reflect the dedication of our teachers or the hard work of our students and parents. However, it does reflect how well our students did on the MCT2, the state science test, and the state writing tests. The high schools have additional assessment standards they have to reach. The main thing to note here is that, as much as we love our school and the wonderful people involved in it, no one benefits from our school being labeled "failing."

I encourage you to plan to attend the public meetings that will be announced soon to inform the public of the MDE findings and what we are doing as a result. In the meantime, contact me, the SLE principal, if you have any questions, comments or want to know how you can help your children succeed in school. - JH








SLE Principal Jimmy Henderson shares the school's school improvement plans with the congregations of Truelight MB Church and Jones Chapel MB Church in December.