Nyssa schools find the path to success
Tuesday, October 16, 2007 12:05 PM PDT
There was a surprise party last week at Nyssa Middle School, but instead of a gathering to celebrate a birthday, this observance was focused on a different, but by now common, theme for Nyssa educators: Success.
Nyssa Middle School Principal Jana Iverson threw the party for the teachers at the school to mark the top ranking of “Exceptional” for the school on the Oregon Department of Education’s 2006 to 2007 State Report Card.
The party, while apparently low-key, illustrated more than just a minor success story.
Despite difficult odds, the Nyssa School District has consistently managed to perform well by meeting and exceeding statewide and federal standards during the past few years.
For example, Nyssa’s three schools this year met federal and state standards for adequate yearly progress, or AYP.
Most recently, Nyssa Middle School achieved its top ranking on the Oregon State Report Card.
Success, apparently, breeds more success and the Nyssa School District is a good case in point.
There are, no doubt, countless examples of why the district has been so successful but a comment made by superintendent Don Grotting in an Argus Observer story last week sums up one piece of that accomplishment.
“We don’t want any excuses,” he said, “Whether it’s ethnicity, poverty, whatever. We want to compete with districts everywhere, not just those with our demographics.”
That, in a sense, says it all.
As a community, Nyssa nurtures a gem regarding its school district.
That gem did not fall from the sky, but is a testament to teachers and administrators, and finally, to leadership. It’s the kind of leadership that does not find scapegoats or ways to rationalize failures.
Instead, it is leadership that seeks answers by establishing clear expectations and striving for higher levels of improvement while keeping the focus on the primary target of education: Students.
Nyssa has a lot to be proud of regarding its school district.
Shae wrote on Apr 21, 2009 11:57 AM: