School work groups get down to business

By By Georgia E. Frye / staff writer
Feb. 7, 2003
Two Meridian Public School System work groups got down to business Thursday, probing test scores and a wide array of programs that they will eventually recommend be either retained or discarded.
Charged by School Board President Fred Wile with identifying strengths and weaknesses in the system, members of the What Works and New Expectations groups held initial meetings. Wile said he expected that both would report to the board by mid-April, when a full-scale search is expected to be launched for a new superintendent.
Wile emphasized that the goal of the work groups, whose members were appointed last week, is not to place blame for a system beset with declining test scores and what he has described as morale problems.
Wile's comments were echoed by school board vice president Ed Lynch, who sought help from the work groups' members in finding creative and innovative ideas that could help guide the superintendent's search and improve the performance of students in the system.
The groups met separately to discuss existing school programs and test scores.
The What Works group, made up of teachers, principals and administrators, compiled a list of programs that may or may not be working for the district. They are expected to do more detailed analysis in upcoming weekly sessions.
The New Expectations group, who members are drawn from the community at large, spent most of its time Thursday trying to understand the latest test scores of students in the district.
In 2002, Meridian students scored 15 points below the state average on the Mississippi Curriculum Test. The test, given to students in the second through the eighth grades, focuses on reading, math and language.
Wile said Mississippi's test scores are the lowest in the country. "We are below the state, a state that is 50th in the nation."
However, Wile pointed out in a positive note, some scores actually improved in 2002 from 2001 levels.
One issue before the New Expectations work group was accreditation levels, determined by the Mississippi Department of Education, which rates schools on a scale from one to five. Five is the highest rating.
Six public schools in the Meridian system were rated at level one, one was rated level two, five were rated at level three, and one was rated at level four. No schools in the city system were rated level five.
Members of the work groups were encouraged to examine new ideas with an eye toward solving problems.
Angela Payne, a member of the New Expectations group and a recruiter for Meridian Community College, said the test scores reflect the work that needs to be done.