Jasper schools see stars

SchoolDigger.com, an online guide for parents wanting to choose the best K-12 schools for their children, has recently awarded multiple stars in its ranking system to the Jasper and Kingston schools in the Jasper School District. The website's extensive database offers detailed profiles of over 136,000 public and private schools across the US, featuring enrollment data, test scores, financial statistics and more.
Information on the rankings were presented to the Jasper School District Board of Education at its regular meeting held Monday, Nov. 18. Assistant Superintendent Kim Liggett told the board Kingston High School is ranked 6th out of Arkansas high schools and 2nd in Arkansas public high schools and earned a 5-star rating.
Jasper High School ranked in the top 29th percentile of Arkansas High Schools and has earned a 4-star rating.
Jasper Elementary School ranked in the top 29th percentile of Arkansas elementary schools and earned a 4-star rating.
Kingston Elementary School ranked in the top 32nd percentile of Arkansas Elementary Schools and earned a 3-star rating.

"Those are some great scores. We are very proud, for sure," Liggett said.
Liggett also reported to the board that school district students have taking the ATLAS or Arkansas Teaching, Learning & Assessment System interim tests which tests skills required by the end of the year.
The interim tests were given in grades 3 and up.
Teachers are using current standards met and building upon the students' past performance. The testing can determine where intervention instruction is needed.
Liggett said 5th, 7th, 8th grade and geometry students are scoring above the state in math; 5th, 6th, 7th and 9th graders are scoring above the state in English language arts and 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grade students are scoring above the state in science.