Administrative

Students achieve six "Standards of Excellence"

By Nick Clark and Rachel Stover

May 14, 2005

For the third year in a row, Silver Lake students continued to achieve academic excellence at the state level. Dr. Steve Pegram, Silver Lake superintendent, recently announced that students achieved the state Standard of Excellence in six areas this year: fourth-grade math, fifth-grade reading, seventh-grade science, eighth-grade reading, 10th-grade science, and 11th-grade reading.

For the seventh-grade class, the percentage of students scoring proficient or above in science was 88.9 percent. This year’s eighth-graders scoring proficient or above in reading was 94.7 percent and social science was 78.6 percent.

For the 10th-graders, math scores were 61.8 percent proficient or above, and in science they had 80.1 percent of the students scoring high.

Standards of Excellence in reading have been reached by eighth-graders in 2003 and now 2005 and by the 11th-graders for the past three years. A science Standard of Excellence was reached for the first time by the seventh-graders this year and by the 10th-graders in 2003 and this year.

High school principal Larry Winter said this is a major triumph for all of Silver Lake.

"This is huge accomplishment for our students, teachers and community! Accomplishing the Standard of Excellence is a great way to demonstrate to our community the great achievements of our school system. I am really pleased to see that all the hard work that our staff, students and parents put into preparing for the test was well rewarded," he said.

The high school and junior high students who achieved Standard of Excellence received a day off of school this year. The 10th-graders received a pizza party for improving from last year’s scores.

According to Ronda Dewey, grade school principal, the fourth-graders and fifth-graders will also receive a day off of school and a pizza party. Dewey echoed Winter's sentiments.

"It shows the commitment of our students, teachers, and parents. It is an honor to receive this recognition," she said.