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Secretary of Education chalks 1 up for
Durham
Riley will hold his annual State of
American Education address at Southern High School
Author:
SAMANTHA PETERSON The Herald-Sun
January
6, 2000
Southern High School, which jumped from being a low-performing school to
an exemplary one last year, will host U.S. Secretary of Education
Richard Riley's seventh annual State of American Education address next
month.
"It's a very historical event," Principal Henry Pankey said. "For those
of us in education, this is a highlight in our education careers."
The national event, announced Wednesday, will be held at noon on Feb. 22
in Southern's gym.
In the speech, Riley will discuss progress made in education since
delivering his first address in 1994. He has traditionally used the
address to announce major policy initiatives on reading, improving
teacher quality and reforming failing schools.
Riley, who was governor of South Carolina from 1978 to 1986, has known
Gov. Jim Hunt for many years. Hunt asked Riley a few years ago to
consider coming to North Carolina for one of his annual addresses, said
Linda McCoulloch, Hunt's senior education adviser.
Riley chose the state because it has made big improvements in education,
said his press secretary, Erica Lepping. Riley has visited schools in
the state before - he averages about one school visit a week around the
country - but had not spent much time in the Triangle, Lepping said.
The search narrowed to Durham because of its diversity, progress in
improving student achievement and support from administrators among
other factors, Lepping said. Riley's staff visited several schools and
was very impressed by Southern. Not only did the school have enough room
to hold the national event, but it is also a school that has come a long
way, Lepping said.
Southern made the largest gain in the state's school-by-school report
card in August - jumping from being the district's only low-performing
school in 1998 to attaining exemplary status last year.
On the ABCs, a school is low performing if less than 50 percent of its
students perform below grade level and it fails to meet growth goals set
out for it by the state. An exemplary school exceeds the state growth
standards set out for it.
When Pankey took over in 1998, fewer than 36 percent of Southern
students tested in six subjects as "proficient."
Pankey
has instituted several changes, including a strict dress code to help
ensure a safe and orderly environment.
In previous years, Riley has given the annual address at California
State University, Long Beach; Nathan Eckstein Middle School in Seattle;
the Carter Center in Atlanta with former President Jimmy Carter;
Maplewood-Richmond Heights Senior High School in St. Louis; Thomas
Jefferson Middle School in Arlington, Va.; and Georgetown University in
Washington, D.C.
Copyright, 2000, The Durham Herald Company |
