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EDUCATION Ashland High earns kudos from Newsweek Ranked in magazine's "overcoming obstacles" top 500 Comment By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Aug. 25, 2015 at 7:58 PM By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Aug. 25, 2015 at 7:58 PM » Social News Already accustomed to earning regional and national recognition, Ashland High School was singled out again last week by Newsweek as one of the 500 best high schools in the country at educating its economically disadvantaged students. According to the weekly news magazine, Ashland High ranks No. 403 nationally preparing its students for college while also “overcoming obstacles posed by students at an economic disadvantage.” The “Beating the Odds” list ranked the top 500 high schools in the United States. Mazama High in Klamath Falls, ranked No. 258, was the only other Oregon high school to make the list. “The nugget that I took away is that we do a particularly good job of getting every student ready for college instead of focusing on students that would already be college bound,” Ashland High interim principal Erika Bare said. “We’re thrilled. It’s very exciting, and it’s something that we’re always striving for, making sure that every student that comes here is ready for the next step.” Success Academy of Utah ranked No. 1 and Northside College Preparatory High School of Illinois No. 2. Texas and New York had two schools apiece ranked in the top 10. Newsweek also released its “America’s Top High Schools” list last week. No Oregon schools made the cut. The purpose of Newsweek’s “Beating the Odds” list was to address the effect of socioeconomic disadvantage on education because, it reported, “the question ‘What are the best schools?’ has two different answers depending on whether or not student poverty is taken into account.” To do this, Newsweek and its research partner Westat developed a three-step methodology, employing a short list analysis, a ranking analysis and an equity analysis. For the short list analysis, Newsweek developed an achievement index based on proficiency rates on standardized state-level math and reading/language art assessments at high schools nationwide then used that index to identify schools that perform 0.5 standard deviations or more than their state’s average when accounting for students’ socioeconomic status. To track students’ socioeconomic status, Newsweek used the percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunches. According to Newsweek’s researches, 37.6 percent of Ashland High’s students fell into that category. For the ranking analysis, Newsweek created a weighted college readiness index based on six indicators, among them college enrollment rate (25 percent), graduation rate (20 percent), weighted SAT/ACT composite score (17.5 percent) and student retention. For the equity analysis, Newsweek focused on the top high schools identified in its ranking analysis then zeroed in on those in which economically disadvantaged students performed at or above the state average for all students on standardized state reading/language arts and mathematics assessments. Ashland High scored well on all of Newsweek’s measuring sticks, including college readiness (78.2 percent), graduation rate (93.9 percent), student retention (96.7 percent) and average SAT score (1,723). Ashland High’s counselor-to-student ratio was also a respectable 1:477. “The test scores on standardized tests for lower income students was also really strong,” Bare said, “so that tells us that we’re providing them with opportunities. Students are learning what they need to learn to be successful at the next level.” Ashland High’s success also stems from the staff’s leave-no-student-behind mentality, Bare said. “It’s really about looking at every family and every situation and finding ways to help students access our resources,” she said. “It’s about having high standards for every student and expecting that every student is going to succeed, then providing the resources they need to reach that goal.” Ashland students return to school Sept. 2. Joe Zavala can be reached at 541-821-0829 or [email protected]. By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Aug. 25, 2015 at 7:58 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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