Dropout Rate Down, SAT Scores Up At West Deptford High

West Deptford High School ranked second in Gloucester County in SAT scores while gradually decreasing the dropout rate, according to data just released in the state’s annual school report cards.

The average SAT score in West Deptford hit 1546 in 2009-10, with the average section score hitting at least 500 for the first time in the past three years. The biggest jump was in the math section, with a 36-point jump in the average score from 2008-09 to 2009-10, but there were improvements in scores across all sections.

Among Gloucester County schools, only Clearview Regional High School, with an average SAT score of 1553, beat out West Deptford’s average score.

“Instructionally, we’ve been working really hard to provide the necessary challenges for our top students,” Superintendent Kevin Kitchenman said. “We’re quite happy with those results.”

The jump in math scores is especially notable, given the weaker math scores on the New Jersey High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA)–about 79 percent of West Deptford High Schools students pass the math section, while 92.5 percent pass the language arts section.

Part of the jump may be due to students taking advantage an evening SAT prep class the district offers at an extra cost, but Kitchenman said the benefits of a push to everyday math instruction at the elementary level, which has been in place for the past five years, should filter up as students progress through the school system and boost both the district’s SAT and HSPA scores.

Meanwhile, the overall dropout rate declined slightly to just below the state average of 1.7 percent, and there were significant drops in the rate among African-American students and disabled students.

The dropout rate among disabled students actually fell to zero, after being 6.1 percent the year before, and the dropout rate for African-American students went from 3.9 percent to 2.6 percent.

Kitchenman noted that since both of those groups are smaller minorities, small changes can result in big percentage drops.

The gradual decline in the overall dropout rate can be traced back to the district taking the step of creating its own alternative school program in response to higher dropout rates several years ago, Kitchenman said. That program is now in its second year full year of operation.

“We believe it’s something that will provide opportunities for students who aren’t meeting with success in the traditional program,” he said.

There are 14 students currently enrolled in the alternative program, which starts at 3:30 in the afternoon, and offers smaller class sizes and a different atmosphere for students who might have been dealing with attendance or disciplinary problems, Kitchenman said.

One other statistic that jumps out from the school report cards is the student and faculty mobility rates at the elementary-school level.

Green-Fields, for instance, saw its student mobility rate–that is, students who enter or leave the school during the year–jump from 5.2 percent in 2008-09 to 34.3 percent in 2009-10, and its faculty mobility rate jump from zero in 2007-08 to 13.3 percent in ‘08-’09 and 19.5 percent in 2009-2010.

Those extreme jumps are a product of the district moving to grade-level schools, Kitchenman said.

The full report card for all West Deptford schools, as well as schools throughout the state, is available at: education.state.nj.us/rc/rc10/index.html