Covey

Current Trends in Henderson County Public Schools

Current Trends in Henderson County Public Schools

Three trends which have developed in the Henderson County Public Schools district over the last three years are: a growing population of Hispanic students, a stagnant achievement gap in grades 3 through 8 between white and Hispanic students, and an emphasis on instructional monitoring.

Growing Population of Hispanic Students

The student population of Henderson County Public Schools has been growing at a steady rate for several years, due primarily to increases in the number of Hispanic students. Henderson County Public Schools has the largest number of migrant students in the state. According to statistics from North Carolina Department of Instruction's AYP reports for the past three years, the number of white students in grades 3-8 decreased slightly while the number of Hispanic students grew significantly (See Table 1).

Table 1 Comparison of White and Hispanic Populations in Grades 3-8

03-04 04-05 05-06 Net Growth

White 4560 4425 4458 - 2.2%

Hispanic 554 623 668 + 20.5%

The Hispanic population is concentrated in schools on the eastern side of the county which affects four elementary, two middle and two high schools. All of the elementary schools and one of the middle schools are overcrowded and operating above building capacity. Currently one of these elementary schools is being renovated to increase its capacity and a new elementary school on the east side is under construction. The Board of Education will present an expansion proposal for the affected middle school to the County Board of Commissioners within the next year. Because half of the Hispanic students are identified as English Language Learners (ELL), there is a growing need for English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers in all of the schools on the east side.

There are several reasons for the concentration of Hispanic families on the eastern side of the county. Henderson County is the largest producer of apples in North Carolina, and that industry has always been manned by Hispanic workers. For decades migrant workers came to Henderson County in the fall for the harvest season and then moved on. The schools experienced a temporary increase each fall as they served the children of seasonal workers. About ten years ago, migrant workers began to settle in Henderson County permanently as opportunities for year-round employment became available in other agricultural businesses, such as flower greenhouses and tomato farms. They settled on the rural eastern side of the county. Research on population shifts in the 1990's shows a geographical concentration of minority immigrants into specific regions, including the rural southeast. Language minority families are attracted to rural communities, such as the eastern side of Henderson County, by low-skill industries and farm work (Aldridge, J. & Goldman, R., 2007).

After settling in Henderson County, Hispanic families often move their extended families from Mexico to this area. Henderson County provides services for the Hispanic population, such as a bilingual medical center and a center designed to connect Hispanic people with housing, English classes and other services. In recent years many Hispanic citizens have opened restaurants, mercados, hair salons and other businesses to serve the growing Hispanic population as well as other county residents. Henderson County is an appealing place for Hispanic families to settle, and they continue to come.

The Hispanic population in the county schools will most likely continue to grow. In addition to creating a need for more facilities, the increasing number of Hispanic students also presents other instructional challenges for Henderson County Public Schools.

Stagnant Achievement Gap Between White and Hispanic Students

Statistics provided by the Department of Public Instruction for the last three years indicate that there is a substantial achievement gap between white and Hispanic students in grades 3 through 8 in Henderson County Public Schools. The gap between the two groups exists for both reading and mathematics and has remained fairly constant during the three year period. The gap is even wider between white and ELL students, the majority of whom are Hispanic. The effects of the language barrier and the state policy that exempts ELL students from testing for only one year after their entry into the United States negatively impact achievement scores. When compared with white students, the differences in proficiency levels are significant for both Hispanic and ELL subgroups in reading and math (See Table 2).

Table 2: Percent Proficient on Reading and Math End-of-Grade Tests

Reading EOG 03-04 04-05 05-06

White 92.5 93.1 93.5

Hispanic 77.7 77.4 80.5

ELL 69.8 70.9 71.0

Math EOG 03-04 04-05 05-06

White 94.5 94.3 81.6

Hispanic 86.5 85.9 65.4

ELL 74.6 81.0 51.7

There are reasons beyond the language barrier for the lower academic performance of Hispanic and ELL students. In the past school officials across the country expected student achievement among minorities to be lower than that of white students. Education reforms of the past decade focus on higher standards for all students. Closing the gap in achievement is a priority for schools with large percentages of minority students. However, Hispanic students still lag far behind (Aldridge, 2007).

Issues relating to poverty also impact the academic performance of Hispanic students. According to Aldridge and Goldman, one-third of children in the United States live in low-income families. Black and Hispanic children are significantly more likely to live in poverty than white children. Research indicates that children who live in poverty tend to experience delays in their physical, cognitive, language and emotional development that will affect their readiness for school. They are also more likely to receive lower quality medical care, to experience hunger and malnutrition and to be exposed to violence and toxins in their neighborhoods (Aldridge, 2007).

All of these issues pose significant challenges for schools with large minority populations. To improve the achievement of Hispanic students Henderson County schools