Success Stories
WestEd has helped numerous low-performing districts and schools significantly increase student performance. Below is a sample of our successful partnerships.
Creighton Elementary School District, Phoenix, AZ.
In 2007-2008, prior to WestEd's work with the district, only two of Creighton's nine schools were identified as "Performing" by the state. Six were identified as "Underperforming," and one was identified as “Failing to Meet Academic Standards." After two years of partnering with WestEd, one school is identified as "Highly Performing", seven as "Performing Plus", and one as "Performing."
Noralto Elementary School, Twin Rivers Unified School District, Sacramento, CA.
WestEd began providing district and school improvement services to the low-performing Noralto Elementary School in 2006. Between 2006 and 2010, Noralto Elementary’s Academic Performance Index (API) score jumped from 672 in 2006 to 793 in 2010. In 2009 alone, Noralto’s API increased by 55 points, more than tripling the state average for API growth in 2009. The California state average for API growth in 2009 is 14 points.
Monache High School, Porterville Unified School District, Porterville, CA
WestEd began providing school improvement services to Monache High School in 2005. Between 2005 and 2008, Monache High School’s Academic Performance Index (API) score jumped from 672 in 2005 to 772 in 2010. Before WestEd began working with the Monache High School, the school's API closely mirrored the CA average for high school API. After working with WestEd, the school's API surpassed the CA high school average by over 40 points.
Hillsboro-Deering Elementary School,
Hillsboro, NH
In 2007, Hillsboro-Deering Elementary School, a school in corrective action in English Language Arts, contacted WestEd for assistance with the development of a student intervention system informed by formative assessment practice and implementation of research-based classroom instructional strategies. Over two years, WestEd worked with the school leadership team to determine a set of essential standards for each grade level, to create a series of common formative assessments and to build the school’s capacity for instructional excellence. In 2009, Hillsboro-Deering Elementary School met AYP performance targets for all student groups in English Language Arts. From 2007 -2009, the percentage of students scoring substantially or partially below proficient decreased from 32% to 23%, while the percentage of students scoring at the proficient or proficient with distinction levels increased from 68% to 77%.
William Taylor Elementary School, New Bedford, MA.
By the end of WestEd’s three-year Comprehensive School Reform model engagement, Taylor Elementary School received recognition as a Massachusetts ‘Compass School’ due to increased student achievement gains. In 2008, when 22 of New Bedford’s 27 Public Schools were identified for Improvement, Taylor Elementary School made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for English language arts and math in both the Aggregate and Subgroups. In 2009, the school’s performance rating on Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests was high for both English language arts and math.
Merrimack School District, Merrimack, NH.
WestEd helped the Merrimack district leadership team develop school and district structures to support data analysis at the classroom level. As a result, literacy scores in the district significantly increased across all measured subcategories Title I, SPED for grades 3-6.
Nicoloff (George) Elementary School, South Bay Union Elementary District, San Diego, CA.
In 2007, WestEd began providing district and school improvement services to the then low-performing South Bay Union Elementary District in California. In 2009, Nicoloff (George) Elementary School met its API growth targets schoolwide, and for all subgroups. Also in 2009, Nicoloff's API increased by 67 points, more than quadrupling the state average for API growth.
Julius Corsini Elementary School, Palm Springs Unified School District, CA
WestEd began providing school improvement services to Julius Corsini Elementary school in 2007. Over the course of WestEd’s engagement, Corsini Elementary achieved over 100 points of API growth, going from an API score of 649 in 2007 to 747 in 2009, and the school exited Program Improvement.
Wright (Orville) Elementary School, Modesto City Elementary District,Stanislaus, CA
WestEd has provided district and school improvement services to Modesto City Elementary District, CA since 2006. According to the California API, in 2009, Wright (Orville) Elementary School met its growth targets schoolwide, and for all subgroups. Also in 2009, Wright's API increased by 38 points.
Lennox School District, Lennox, CA
Since 2008, WestEd has been the District Assistance and Intervention Team (DAIT) provider for the Lennox School District in the Los Angeles area. During this period, student test scores have improved in all areas. The district made a 64-point gain in state API ranking and made gains in AYP targets as well, including a district-wide gain of 18.7 percent scoring proficient in mathematics. Additionally, English learners and students with disabilities made great gains in both content areas. The subgroup API for English learners grew 52 points in the two-year period, and the API for students with disabilities grew 132 points. Both groups made significant gains in the percent scoring proficient in English language arts and mathematics.