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Clay Receives HSTW Gold Award
Clay High School has received a national High Schools That Work (HSTW) Gold Achievement Award based on the progress of local school leaders and teachers in improving school practices and raising student achievement. The award was presented by Gene Bottoms, senior vice president of the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) and founder of HSTW, at the 28th Annual HSTW Staff Development Conference in Nashville, on Wednesday, July 16, 2014. Mr. Jeff Hunter, a Clay High School Science teacher and the High Schools That Work Coordinator, travelled to receive the award on behalf of the school.
The school is one of only eight schools in the nation receiving the Gold Achievement Award in 2014.
Bottoms praised the school for its achievement, pointing out that it takes dedication and hard work on the part of state, district and school leaders and teachers to make progress in preparing students for college and careers in an increasingly competitive world. He presented the award before an audience of more than 5,000 educators from across the nation attending the HSTW conference.
To earn this recognition, schools had to have at least 50 percent of their students earn the HSTW Award of Educational Achievement based on their performance on the 2014 HSTW Assessment. To earn this award, students met all three readiness goals on the assessment, completed the HSTW-recommended curriculum in at least two subjects and completed a concentration in the humanities, mathematics/science or a career technical area. These schools also met the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) criteria of the federal No Child Left Behind Act or had a graduation rate of at least 85 percent.
“This school has shown how to raise student achievement,” said Gene Bottoms, “with programs that blend college-ready academics and career-technical studies to show students the pathway to good careers after high school.”
“The students, faculty and staff of Clay High School have done a fantastic job in increasing our expectations of our students and at the same time providing them with the resources and assistance to meet those expectations,” said Clay High School principal Todd Warnock. “I am very proud of the many awards and accomplishments that our students and school have received in the past and I firmly believe that the future looks bright for the current students we have at Clay.” “Even though this is an award for our High School it is also an acknowledgement of the dedication of all students, parents, community members and school personnel here at Clay.” Warnock also praised the efforts of HSTW Coordinator, Jeff Hunter, who travelled to Tennessee to receive the award, Making Middle Grades Work Coordinator, Russ Breech, and HSTW Coach Betsy Fannin. Mr. Warnock said, “Without the efforts of Jeff, Russ and Betsy this high level of achievement and this award would not have happened.”
The largest SREB program, HSTW is a national, comprehensive school improvement design based on the premise that most students can master rigorous academic and career/technical studies if school leaders and teachers create a school environment that motivates all students to make the effort to succeed. The HSTW initiative is the nation’s first large-scale effort to engage state, district and school leaders in partnership with teachers, students, parents and the community to equip all students with the knowledge and skills needed to graduate from high school and succeed in college and the workplace. More than 1, 200 high schools in 30 states and the District of Columbia participate in the HSTW school improvement initiative.