Five Lawrenceville Schools Miss Making AYP

In the first year of tougher state standards, 102 out of Gwinnett County's 127 public schools met the state’s accountability goals for the 2010-2011 school year. This is according to information released by the Georgia Department of Education.

Adequate Yearly Progress requires schools to meet standards in three areas. They are Test Participation (for both Mathematics and Reading/English Language Arts), Academic Performance (for both Mathematics and Reading/English Language Arts), and a Second Indicator. 

In Lawrenceville, five schools missed making AYP.  They are , , , and .

Creekland and Five Forks Middle Schools both missed AYP in Mathematics for Students with Disabilities. Central Gwinnett High School fell short in the following areas: Graduation Rate for All and Black Students, English Language Arts for All, Hispanic, and Economically Disadvantaged Students. Since this is the first year these three schools missed the mark, they will not undergo any corrective action.

Sweetwater Middle School is now designated as "Needs Improvement Year 1" after failing to make AYP in the following areas: Mathematics for Students with Disabilities, English Language Learners, and Black  Students; and Reading/English Language Arts for Students with Disabilities.

As a result, Sweetwater will offer the option of Public School Choice to their students, allowing them to transfer to either Dacula or Twin Rivers Middle Schools. Parents at Sweetwater will receive information in a mailing outlining how they may switch their student to another school. They will also be notified about dates for AYP Information Sessions at their school to learn about their options before transferring their child.

The deadline for choice transfers will be Friday, August 5th.

Phoenix High School is in its fifth year of "Needs Improvement" and will stay in corrective action. The alternative school missed AYP due to Graduation Rate for All Students. Since Phoenix is an open campus facility, students may transfer through that option. The school will also provide students with locally funded tutoring.

In a release, GCPS CEO/Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks said “We realize that the standards for making AYP continue to increase and as a district we are committed to raising student achievement and meeting those standards. While we are pleased that the vast majority of our schools made AYP, we cannot overlook the fact that we did see an increase in schools not meeting the state’s standard. Specifically, we need to look at achievement at the middle and high school levels, focusing on increasing achievement for individual students and subgroups of students who are struggling to meet the higher standards.”