Number 7 On The Charts

From the Pittsburgh Tribune Review

State's schools earn No. 7 ranking in nonprofit study
By Amy Crawford, TRIBUNE-REVIEW, Monday, January 19, 2009

Pennsylvania schools got a B minus in a recent nationwide study -- not bad, considering that the nation's schools garnered a C.

The nonprofit Editorial Projects in Education, which publishes the newspaper Education Week, released its annual 50-State Report Card this month, and Pennsylvania's public schools with a score of 80.3 are ranked seventh.

Maryland's schools won the top slot, with a score of 84.7 percent, a solid B. Massachusetts came in second, followed by New York and Virginia. No state could boast an A grade.

Education Week editors said the grades were based on a variety of statistics, including school funding, test scores and graduation rates, along with whether states have set high standards.

The overall grades were broken down into 23 categories. Pennsylvania received a perfect score in workplace readiness. It received its lowest score, a C minus, in college readiness.

"We're pleased about our placement," said Michael Race, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Education. However, he added, "We can't really rest on our laurels."

Race said the department is most troubled by the college-readiness grade. While the state's high school graduation rate is one of the highest in the nation, he said, the percentage of people holding post-secondary degrees is below average.

More than 80 percent of Pennsylvania students graduate with high school diplomas, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Census data shows that about a quarter of Pennsylvanians have four-year degrees, slightly lower than the national average of 27 percent.

Race said that increasing the rigor of high school programs would address that disparity. The department will continue to push for graduation competency assessments, a controversial proposal that would require all high school students to pass a series of tests before graduating.

"You really have to up the rigor of your schools," Race said. "Our kids don't compete with kids in New Jersey and Ohio anymore; they compete with kids in Singapore and China."

Closer to home, local school officials were pleased by the ranking, though not surprised.

"I think we have great schools here, especially in Southwestern Pennsylvania," said Georgia Teppert, principal at Greater Latrobe Senior High School. "I've been around, and we're fortunate here in Westmoreland County."

She acknowledged the state could get a better grade.

"We can do better," she said. "We continue to forge ahead. But we've made great strides."