Student Test Scores Show Improvements at Haverhill High, Tilton

(WHAV News file photograph.)

Officials say the latest student test scores show significant improvements at Haverhill High School and Tilton elementary school.

Haverhill Mayor James J. Fiorentini said most of the credit for MCAS testing gains should go to classroom teachers and students who worked together toward a shared goal. However, he used the state announcement to talk about increases in the school budget over the last two years.

“We have made a big investment in our schools by increasing the city’s contribution to the school budget by almost $15 million over the past three years,” he said, adding, “I’m pleased to see it paying off.”

Both Fiorentini and school Superintendent Margaret Marotta said, despite the improved scores, there is still room for improvement. The mayor said not every school did as well as Tilton elementary and Haverhill High School.

Marotta said, “We had some solid gains, and made significant improvements resulting in the district moving out of the ‘Needing Intervention’ category. However, we still have several schools and subgroups categorized as needing assistance.”

Haverhill High saw the percentage of students who exceeded or met state performance expectations grow from 69 to 74. In the state’s key “Student Growth Percentile” category, which measures how much students’ scores changed relative to other students statewide with similar scores in previous years, Haverhill High jumped from 34 last year to 45.3 in the new scores.

The high school’s graduation rate increased from 78 percent to 83 percent. Its dropout rate plummeted from 4.9 percent to 1.3 percent.

The 2018 state Department of Education results are from testing that took place during the 2017 school year.

School officials are expected to review the MCAS results with the School Committee at Thursday’s meeting at 7 p.m. at City Hall.