| Calhoun schools, which at times were near the bottom in academic outcomes in WV, climbed 10 spots to place 30th out of 55 West Virginia counties in yearly rankings by SchoolDigger.com.
The rankings for the 2016-17 school year posted this week were based on standardized test scores released by the W.Va. Dept. of Education, the commercial website says.
In 2015-16 the county placed 40th among the state's counties.
Among the state's 117 public high schools, Calhoun Middle/High School was 81st, an improvement over the prior year's ranking of 94th.
Calhoun Superintendent of Schools Kelli Whytsell said,
"We have worked really hard the last few years to improve all aspects of education in Calhoun County. We continue to apply for grants and blend funding streams to increase the opportunities for our students."
"It is an exciting time in Calhoun County. I take great pride in how hard our administrators, teachers and support staff work for our students," Whytsell said.
SchoolDigger says Calhoun Middle School students made an even bigger jump.
Compared to the rest of the state's 176 middle schools, Calhoun Middle/High rated 114. The previous year the county's middle school rated near the bottom, at 161st.
The county's top-performing school, Arnoldsburg, suffered a steep drop-off but still placed a respectable 111th out of 399 elementary schools. The school was 40th the previous year, which was a single spot from the top 10 percent of all elementary schools in the state. Even with the decline the school finished just outside the top 25 percent.
The county's other elementary school, Pleasant Hill, was 180th out of 399, an improvement of two positions from 182nd the prior year.
Arnoldsburg, the larger of the two elementary schools with 240 students compared to 223 at Pleasant Hill, had a higher average student score of 65.9 compared to 53.7 at Pleasant Hill. Pleasant Hill had a lower student/teacher ratio at 13.1 students per teacher compared to 15 at Arnoldsburg. The student/teacher ratio at Calhoun Middle/High was 14.1.
Pleasant Hill was the only one of the three schools with more than half (51.6 percent) of its students qualifying for free or reduced-cost school meals. At Arnoldsburg 49.2 percent of the student body was eligible for free/reduced-cost meals, with 43.6 percent eligible at Calhoun Middle/High.
The IZ grant at Arnoldsburg Elementary has expanded the Community Schools initiative and is continuing to expand and Pleasant Hill Elementary is in the process of adding High tunnels and is working on a grant to repair the walking track, according to Superintendent Whytsell.
CM-HS is expanding the after school opportunities for students in grades 7-10, by partnering with the Calhoun-Gilmer career Center. Students will be able to choose two career and technical labs for career exploration in the evenings.
Whytsell said, "Through grants we have been able to bring back a wealth of experience in teachers that had previously retired and are now back working with students and teachers. It's a win win for everyone."
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