Dallas (WBAP/KLIF News) – The George W. Bush Presidential Center has unveiled a website that lets families compare school districts across the country.
The site, at bushcenter.org/stateofourcities, allows users to compare items such as graduation rates and test scores among different ethnic groups side-by-side.
“We often have too much data and too little insight,” says Fort Worth Independent School District Superintendent Kent Scribner.
Scribner says the site can be useful for families, but districts can also use the information to see where other cities excel and see if similar policies could be adopted.
“We’re very, very serious about building a strong foundation for our students so they can be successful in the middle years and then college and career,” Scribner says.
The site also lets users compare absentee rates among students and teachers as well as the number of students taking advanced placement classes.
Ft. Worth Mayor Betsy Price says the site does not aim to spark competition among districts, but one city that is struggling in a certain area or with a certain group of students can look more closely at a city that has excelled.
“Any mayor who hopes to build their city and keep their city moving forward, we’ve got to have a great workforce in the pipeline,” Price says. “Texas has been very blessed and very successful, but we’ve got to keep moving forward.”
(Copyright 2016 WBAP/KLIF News. All rights reserved)
