DCHS Maintains High Graduation Rate

October 1, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

The high school graduation rate in DeKalb County was at 93.7% for the 2017-18 year and though it was down slightly from the previous year it exceeded the state graduation rate by 4.6%.

The DeKalb County graduation rate for the 2016-17 year was 95.41%. Two years ago, the rate was 97.58% for the 2015-16 year and 95.8% three years ago for the 2014-15 year.

Education Commissioner Candice McQueen announced today (Monday) that the 2017-18 high school graduation rate held steady at 89.1 percent, which is the highest graduation rate on record for Tennessee. This year, more than 56 percent of districts with high schools saw their graduation rates improve when compared to last year’s rates.

“Our schools and districts should be proud that once again we have hit our state’s highest graduation rate on record while still holding our students to high expectations,” Commissioner McQueen said. “By continuing to raise the expectations, we are signaling that Tennessee students are leaving high school with the knowledge and skills to be successful in college and the workforce. This graduation rate is a testament to the work being done by teachers and students in schools across the state.”

Under the Haslam administration, Tennessee has set high expectations for both students and educators, and students have made significant gains as a result. As part of this work, the state transitioned to a more rigorous calculation for graduation rates in 2011, and even under the new criteria, rates have continued to rise.

Additionally, the state raised the bar for graduation expectations when the State Board of Education included participation in the ACT or SAT as a graduation requirement for Tennessee students.  This year’s results are the first to reflect this change in accountability.

For the 2017-18 school year, the most notable gains and overall achievements in the state are:

9 districts improved their graduation rates by 5 percentage points or more. The districts with the most significant gains were Union City (9.4 percentage points), Richard City (8.7 percentage points), Van Buren County (8.4 percentage points), Sequatchie County (7.6 percentage points), and Bledsoe County (6.5 percentage points).

44 districts—over one-third of the districts in the state with high schools—have graduation rates at or above 95 percent, up from last year.

106 districts—nearly 81 percent of the districts in the state—have graduation rates at or above 90 percent, up from 98 districts last year. Richard City, Oneida SSD, Alcoa City, and Morgan County all had graduation rates at or above 99 percent.

22 schools across 15 districts had graduation rates of 100 percent.

September 30, 2018
By: Bill Conger

The DeKalb County High School Fighting Tiger Band took home the top trophy Saturday at the Yellow Jacket Invitational in Trousdale County.  Under the direction of Tracy Luna and Assistant Band Director Jonathan Holland, the marching unit won 1^st place band, 1^st place percussion, 1^st place field commander for Axel Rico, and 3^rd place color guard in its division.

“All year I have tried to instill in the kids a work ethic that rivals big bands,” says Director Tracy Luna. “We are not in search of trophies, but rather personal excellence. Our mantra all year has been #bestsmallband. “

The band will perform its “Phantom of the Opera” themed show again at Friday’s away football game in Smith County.  Two more band competitions are coming up in October.

September 30, 2018
By: Kristen VanVranken

The DeKalb Middle School girls and boys Cross Country teams competed with an outstanding performance at the McCallie Invitational on September 29th in Chattanooga. Out of a competitive field of 12 teams the girls placed 2nd and the boys finished 4th.

Aaron Gottlied captured the title of the boys varsity race conquering the two mile course with a time of 11:32. “Two sub 6:00 minute miles back to back is an extremely challenging thing to do…there are only a handful of middle school runners in the state that are doing this right now.  It was a much deserving and exciting win for him” said Coach  Kristen VanVranken.

Running strong behind Gottlied and rounding up the boys varsity was:   Cooper Brown 20th 12:55,  Caleb Gray 21st 13:01,  Kaleb Spears 23rd 13:06,  Cameron Miller 43rd 13:46, Andrew Tramel 51st 14:17, and Cale Brown 60th 14:34.

The girls varsity, led by Katherine Knowles, had 4 runners in the top 20! Knowles finished 6th 13:47,  Zoe Keys 7th 13:49, Mylie Phillips 14th 14:46,  Madeline Martin 15th 14:49, Emily Young 22nd 15:38, and Summer Morse 27th 15:57.   “Our varsity consists of 6 sixth graders and one seventh….you just don’t see this type of running and performances from such a young team.  They are such a special group of girls…with limitless potential,” said  VanVranken

In the JV races Liam Wallace led the boys with a time of 16:43, followed by Erick Hernandez 17:06, Robert Wheeler 17:25, and Ethan Spears 24:25.

Darrah Ramsey led the girls JV with at time of 18:00, Sylvia Evans 18:34, Alexa Hernandez 19:32, and Mara Oakley 22:05.

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