To the Editor:

Congratulations to the students, staff, and administrators of Altamont Elementary School and Guilderland High School on receiving the designation of Reward Schools from the New York State Education Department.  Both AES and GHS were classified as “High Performing,” in the report, from New York State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia.  

According to the State Education Department website, Reward Schools are either schools that have high achievement or schools that have made the most progress in the state and do not have significant gaps in student achievement between subgroups.

To be identified as a Reward School, a school must:

— Be among the top 20 percent of schools in the state for English language arts and math performance for both the 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years or be among the top 10 percent of schools in terms of gains in ELA and math performance in the 2013-14 school year.

— Have made Adequate Yearly Progress for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years for all groups of students on all measures for which the school is accountable, including the requirement that 95 percent of all groups participate in the English language arts and mathematics assessments.

— Not have unacceptably large gaps in the student performance on an accountability measure between students who are members of an accountability group (e.g., low-income students) and students who are not members of that group.

In addition, elementary and middle schools must demonstrate that students are making annual growth in ELA and math that exceeds 50 percent and that the school’s lowest achieving students are also making gains that exceed 50 percent.

High schools must have graduation rates above 80 percent to be a high achieving school and above 60 percent to be a high progress school and the percentage of students in the school who graduate with a Regents diploma with advanced designation or a Career and Technical Endorsement must exceed the state average.  High schools must also demonstrate that their graduation rate for students who entered the school performing below proficient in ELA or math exceeds the state average.

As a resident of Altamont, I am particularly proud of the reputation of excellence of our elementary school, and I applaud all the teachers and administrators in our system who work hard to maintain a level of excellence for our children.  Receiving this honor can only serve to underscore the value that each and every one of our schools has for our children, our communities and our district.

Jean Guyon

Altamont