Detroit's (predominantly black) public schools are the worst in the nation, and it takes some doing to be worse than Washington, D.C. Only 3 percent of Detroit's fourth-graders scored proficient on the most recent National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) test, sometimes called "The Nation's Report Card." Twenty-eight percent scored basic and 69 percent below basic. "Below basic" is the NAEP category when students are unable to demonstrate even partial mastery of knowledge and skills fundamental for proficient work at their grade level. It's the same story for Detroit's eighth-graders. Four percent scored proficient, 18 percent basic and 77 percent below basic. Michael Casserly, executive director of the D.C.-based Council on Great City Schools, in an article appearing in Crain's Detroit Business, (12/8/09) titled, "Detroit's Public Schools Post Worst Scores on Record in National Assessment," said, "There is no jurisdiction of any kind, at any level, at any time in the 30-year history of NAEP that has ever registered such low numbers." The academic performance of black students in other large cities such as Philadelphia, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles is not much better than Detroit and Washington. ...more

December 26, 2009

To boost academic achievement, many Highlands County schools are looking to parents to get them involved in the education of their children. ...more

November 6, 2009

Local teenager Shawnee Lester, 17, has been selected to represent Florida at the 2009 Miss American Teen Pageant. ...more

October 15, 2009

As lawmakers prepare to cut millions from schools to balance the budget, a national magazine says Florida already ranks below most states in money spent per student. ...more

January 7, 2009

Administrators are already dreaming of the ways more than $1 million in "A" school money will fund bonuses for teachers, afterschool tutoring programs and the hiring of additional help for Hernando County Schools. ...more

September 20, 2008

Hillel School was one of two schools in Hillsborough County to receive blue-ribbon status this year. ...more

September 17, 2008

Hillel School was one of two schools in Hillsborough County to receive blue-ribbon status this year. ...more

September 17, 2008

With its emphasis on academic achievement and cultivating positive attitudes, the Youth Environmental Services program has been trying to lead young men down the right path and away from a life of crime since its inception in 1994. ...more

August 27, 2008

A South Shore-based organization wants to catch up to area youths before they fall into a life of crime. To that end, Youth Environmental Services will host an open house from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at its headquarters. The goal of the organization is to treat and rehabilitate delinquent males ages 14 to 18 and to prevent them from entering the criminal justice system. ...more

August 12, 2008

Your editorial, 'Shooting Case Raises Concerns About District's Credibility' (Our Opinion, Sept. 30), regarding safety at King High School recognized the improvements we have made on the campus. Like all our high schools, King High has worked to reduce misbehavior that interferes with learning. Principal Carla Bruning and her staff have done an exceptional job and the proof is in the dramatic reduction in incidents and in the academic achievement worthy of celebration. ...more

October 8, 2007