By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Ellis USD 388 earned three Kansans Can Awards for school performance.
It was awarded a gold award for its graduation rate, bronze award for postsecondary effectiveness and copper award for students being academically prepared for postsecondary success.
The district's 2018 graduation rate was 97.4 percent. This was compared to a state graduation rate of 87.5 percent. Reporting of graduation rates at the state level run about a year behind.
The district's five-year graduation rate was 98 percent.
The district's five-year post-secondary effectiveness rate was 59 percent.
This statistic counts students who eared industry recognized certifications while in high school, earned a postsecondary certificate or degree after graduation or who were enrolled in postsecondary education in both their first and second years following high school graduation.
The state uses risk factors such as poverty, student mobility and chronic absenteeism to predict what a district's success rate is likely to be. Ellis scored within the 56.6 percent to 59.6 percent predicted effectiveness rate for its students.
For the academically preparedness award, the state looks at performance on state assessment tests. The award takes into account those students scoring above grade level.
In math 37.19 precent of students scored at levels three or four on state assessments, the upper two tiers on the test. This is compared to 32.64 percent for the state average. District students scoring in the top two tiers in math was also up from 35.22 percent in 2018.
In 2019, 40.57 percent of district students scored in the top two tiers in English compared to 33.49 percent the year before and 36.58 percent for the state average in 2019.
In 2019 and 2018, 51.1 percent of district students scored in the top two tiers in science. The state average in 2019 was 35.56 percent.
You can view Ellis' full Kansans Can Report Card by clicking here.