Staff Writer
HOULTON — SAT scores for Houlton High School’s grade 11 students were presented to the school board at their February meeting.
“The students and teachers have worked very hard with SAT prep and these scores really show it,” said Dawn Dougan, SAD 29’s assistant superintendent.
According to information presented by Dougan at the Feb. 4 meeting, students’ 2007 scores were consistent with the state average. Math scores held steady and the students showed marked improvement in their reading scores, both subjects meeting the state standard for adequate yearly progress. The SAT also tests students in the area of writing; these scores were up 24 percent over the 2006 scores.
When compared to other county schools, Houlton students scored third in the county for writing, fifth in reading and seventh in county for math.
“We’re constantly looking at the curriculum and talking to students and staff to see how we can improve,” explained Dougan. “The students are working hard and, most importantly, the students are learning.”
Also at the meeting, high school principal Marty Bouchard and Joe Fagnant, chair of the school’s accreditation committee, shared an overview of the ongoing accreditation process. As part of the process, the school forms a steering committee. That committee works in subcommittees to examine seven different standards of accreditation, explore how the school meets those standards and draft reports on each standard. The compilation of that work will be examined by a visiting accreditation committee, scheduled to be at Houlton High School in March.
“I can’t tell you all the working the steering committee has done. They’ve done a great deal,” explained Bouchard. “Now, a visiting committee will come look at what we’ve done, tell us where we stand and what they think of our school.”
Accreditation, completed every 10 years, can make a difference when students apply to colleges. It also gives the school a chance to examine its strengths and weaknesses.
“The process has changed a lot in the last 10 years. There’s a lot to it,” said Fagnant. “But it is a valuable process.”
In other news, the school board approved the resignation of high school math teacher Warren Tweedie, who has been working in the district for over two years. The board also OK’d a school calendar for the 2008-2009 school year.
The next meeting of the SAD 29 Board of Directors will be Monday, March 3 at 6 p.m. at Houlton Southside School..
