Three Gordon County elementary schools and Calhoun Elementary have been named “High Progress Schools,” according to a recent release from the Georgia Department of Education (GADOE).

Fairmount, W.L. Swain, Tolbert, and Calhoun Elementary schools were named among the 10 percent of Title I schools in the State for making the most progress in improving the performance of the “all students” group over three years on the statewide assessments, according to the GADOE.

“A school may not be classified as a High-Progress School if there are significant achievement gaps across subgroups that are not closing in the school.”

Principal of W.L. Swain, Gina Daniel, and Principal of Tolbert, Sket Angland, were recognized by the Gordon County Board of Education, Tuesday, for their efforts. Principal of Fairmount, Kimm Smith was also recognized at the meeting, though she was not in attendance. Smith was traveling to Washington to accept the National Blue Ribbon school award received by Fairmount earlier in the year.

In addition to the Title I recognition, Ashworth Middle School was recently named one of eight, Breakout Middle Schools for the state, bestowed by the Georgia Association of Secondary School Principals (GASSP).

Ashworth Principal, Marc Feuerbach, along with Superintendent Dr. Bill McCown, traveled to Savannah on Monday, Nov. 5 to accept the award. The honor is the highest honor a middle school can earn through the GASSP organization.

According to Feuerbach, the main areas of focus centered around how the school personalizes its curriculum to benefit all stake holders, what the school does for those with extra needs or those who come into the school ahead of the game, how are they challenged, and shared governance and how leadership is promoted amongst staff and students, among others.

“We were very excited,” said Feuerbach, who went on to say the award is a huge accomplishment to the students and the teachers.

“Our organization looks to identify schools throughout the nation that embody best practices for our students and schools that get results,” said Dr. Renee Mallard, Middle School Coordinator for GASSP. “I am proud that we identified schools throughout the state that represent a true cross-section of Georgia.”