Advocacy Group Ranks Newport Schools For Student Performance

The following is a press release localized for Newport.

The Rhode Island Campaign for Achievement Now (RI-CAN) released its 2012 School Report Cards for 300 Rhode Island public schools.

Check out the results for the Newport school district. In the overall elementary school rankings, Underwood Elementary School ranked fourteenth in the state. ranked forty-fifth,ranked sixtieth, and the former Sullivan School ranked sixty-fifth out of 76.

was given a C- for average student performance, or the average percentage of students proficient or above in reading and math.

The achievement gap for Newport elementary schools was rated an F.

“The report cards are designed to help Rhode Island parents serve as effective advocates for their kids," said Maryellen Butke, RI-CAN executive director. "Parents deserve to know how well their child’s public school is meeting the needs of all of its students.”

RI-CAN used students’ academic performance in four key categories: average student performance, subgroup performance, achievement gaps and performance gains. The grades, which range from A to F, are calculated based on the October 2011 New England Common Assessment Program scores, released in January 2012 by the Rhode Island Department of Education.

Click here to read their methadology.

Using the data from the School Report Cards, RI-CAN also released the Top 10 Rhode Island public schools that have higher levels of achievement in critical areas. RI-CAN used these rankings to generate Top 10 lists for each category in the report cards: Performance Gains, Low-Income Performance, African-American Performance, Hispanic Performance, Improvement, Limited English Proficiency Performance and Title I School Performance.

 “Our state's achievement gaps are still unacceptably high and overall performance statewide is stagnant,” said Butke. "We must be transparent about how Rhode Island schools are performing - it's a critical step towards improving our schools."