By SHERRY DIGMON
News Publisher
The Alabama Department of Education report cards are out for 2018-19, and while two of the four schools in this area improved, the grades are still a C. District-wide, the letter grade is a B.
Escambia County Assistant Superintendent Beth Drew notes Escambia County Middle School and Escambia County High School continue to earn higher grades.
“ECHS improved four points this year,” Drew said. “They moved from a 70 to a 74. Of course, still a C, but improving. They improved in four of the five categories for high schools.
“ECMS improved three points this year. They moved from a 73 to a 76. Middle schools only have three categories used to determine their grade. They improved in all three areas.
“We are proud of the progress our schools are making. They are on the right trajectory.”
Following is a breakdown of local schools.
* Escambia County Middle School – score 76 (C) ; grades 4-8; poverty level 69.6 percent; enrollment 602. It should be noted the middle school has steadily improved over the last three years. In 2016-2017, the school’s grade was 69; in 2017-18, it was 73. This year, it’s 76.
* Escambia County High School – score 74 (C) ; grades 9-12; poverty level 57.7 percent; enrollment 388. ECHS has shown improvement over the past three years: 2016-17: 66; 2017-18: 70; 2018-19: 74.
* Huxford Elementary – score 79 (C); grades K-6; poverty level 39.8 percent; enrollment 279. HES has dropped from a B to a C. Scores for the last three years are 2016-17: 83; 2017-18: 82; 2018-19: 79.
* Rachel Patterson Elementary School – score 70 (C); grades PK-3; poverty level 71.1 percent; enrollment 457. The school was not tested in 2016-17. In 2017-18, the school scored 72.