Burke County Public Schools shared the following information about state accountability reports for their schools:
The North Carolina State Board of Education released the state’s accountability report today, showing that
overall students in the state and in Burke County improved their performance on state tests during the 2021-22
school year compared to the previous year’s COVID steep decline, and schools achieved growth almost on par
with pre-pandemic levels.
The results came as no surprise to Burke County Public Schools as district and school level leaders
continuously analyze internal data following benchmarks and end-of-year state testing.
Burke County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Mike Swan said, “While we faced continued challenges
during the 2021-22 school year due to COVID-19, we have highlights from the academic year to celebrate. We
knew going into last year the student learning loss could not be made up in one year, which is why we have
been proactive in addressing students’ academic, social and emotional needs. During the pandemic, we faced a
15 to 20 point proficiency drop and made a goal to make up half of that last year. While we know there is more
work to be done, we are happy that we achieved that goal and made up half of those losses from 2019, the last
‘normal’ academic year.”
The state assigns a letter grade to each school based on performance grades on end-of-year tests. Burke Middle
College achieved a School Performance Grade of “A” school and “B” schools include two traditional high
schools – Draughn and Patton – as well as Heritage Middle and Drexel Elementary. Burke Middle College’s
cohort graduation rate remains 100 percent. District wide, the graduation rate dropped 3.2 percentage points,
and sits at 88.1 percent, Burke County’s cohort graduation rate remains above state cohort levels, which are at
86.2 percent.
Swan said, “Thankfully, our Board of Education last year made face-to-face instruction a priority and got our
students back in school full time well before some of our surrounding districts, which definitely helped our
students’ academic achievement. I am certain, we would not have had the successes present in this data had that
not been the case. Although we still had many students and teachers quarantined throughout the year last year,
we were still able to make student gains in most of our schools. We realize where we have some work to do, and
we are prepared to help these schools in these areas.”
He continued, “We faced continued challenges during the 2021-2022 school year. While district-wide we did
not have to conduct learning remotely, students and staff affected by COVID-19 still faced up to 10 days of
quarantines and isolations each time they were exposed to or tested positive for COVID, which meant they were
not in the classroom for long periods of time. We credit the board for putting a priority on face-to-face
instruction last academic year. We confirmed what we inherently knew during the height of the pandemic that
the majority of students learn best when they are in front of a highly qualified teacher.”
The state’s report shows that six schools in the district are deemed low performing schools.
Swan said, “EOG and EOCs are a snapshot in time and do not capture all of a student’s hard work and the
support he or she receives over the course of an academic year. The good thing is that all six of our D schools
did show expected overall growth, which measures how students performed compared to their expected
performance. We know our D schools are great schools in great communities with highly qualified teachers and
administrators, hard working students and supportive parents. As we dissect the data, we put researched-based
plans in place for improvements and remain flexible to pivot when needed. Looking ahead, we have our new
strategic plan and district initiatives in place, which put high priority on attendance, a focus on math and reading
instruction, an increase in tutoring opportunities and remediation time built into the school day to address
learning loss.”
Source: Burke County Public Schools press release
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