Academic Achievement Academy

Deborah Kingsberry, Executive Director of Academic Achievement Academy.

By Sarah Williams

Deborah Kingsberry is the Executive Director of Academic Achievement
Academy. Her office is located in Charlotte, North Carolina, but the
program serves not only students who attend schools in the Charlotte
Mecklenburg district; it also serves school districts in some
surrounding counties including Asheville City and Buncombe County.

Supplemental
educational services (SES) are academic or tutoring services offered
during off-school hours to increase the academic achievement of
economically disadvantaged students, particularly in the areas of
reading, writing, and math. The tutoring services are paid for by the
districts and are free to parents of participating students. Under the
federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law, certain Title I School
Improvement schools must offer SES to eligible students.

Through statewide testing, Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) measures the yearly progress of different groups of students toward achieving state academic standards in reading/language arts and math. All groups of students are expected to meet the same target goals each year. Under NCLB, all students are expected to be proficient in reading/language arts and math by 2013-14.

For a school to make AYP, each student group in the tested grades must meet proficiency targets in reading/language arts and math, and each student group must have at least a 95% participation rate in the assessments for both subjects. This represents four targets (proficiency and participation in reading/language arts and math assessments) for each student group.

The student groups are 1) the school as a whole (all students); 2) whites; 3) blacks; 4) Hispanics; 5) Native Americans; 6) Asians; 7) multiracials; 8) economically disadvantaged students (students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch); 9) limited English proficient students; and 10) students with disabilities. Each student is represented in at least two groups – the school as a whole and his/her racial group. Detailed school AYP reports on the web at http://ayp.ncpublicschools.org/ show school as a whole and student group performances.

Title I schools that haven’t met state target goals for AYP for two or more years in the same subject (reading/language arts or math) enter Title I School Improvement. There are two different times that Title I School Improvement schools must begin offering SES. Schools entering Title I School improvement that are in districts participating in the federal SES pilot program offer SES in the first year.

For schools in these SES pilot districts, the traditional first year/public school choice and second year/SES options are reversed. Districts participating in the pilot are listed on the web at www.ncpublicschools.org/nclb/ses/pilot/. Schools in districts not participating in the federal SES pilot program, which are the majority of districts in North Carolina, must follow the traditional path of offering public school choice in year one of Title I School Improvement and offering public school choice and SES in the second year of improvement.

When free tutoring, or supplemental educational services, is offered by a Title I School Improvement school, economically disadvantaged students are eligible to receive the services regardless of their academic performance. This differs from when public school choice is offered by a school and all parents in the school have the option of transferring their children to other schools designated by the district. In North Carolina, students who are qualified to receive free or reduced-price lunch are considered economically disadvantaged.

Academic Achievement Academy’s vision is to deliver quality educational services to students, which will impact academic achievement and provide extraordinary service to schools, parents and students of all ages. Its mission is to teach learners of all ages to reach their potential with proven accelerated learning methods. The possible end result will show students entering into the higher education arena. The employees of this company believe all children can learn. With tailored made learning initiatives for each learner, students will be successful academically.

By the year 2012, Academic Achievement Academy proposes to become a leading provider of high-performance education services in the areas where the program is located. The Academy will expand its services to learners of all ages and will be known for delivering dramatic gains in academic achievement for schools and students. Its Prep program will provide intensive academic intervention and recovery services to “at risk” and underachieving students with proven education methods that accelerate learning faster than traditional approaches.

The Academy will offer supplemental instruction and tutorials for students in grades K-8 in the following areas:

– More intensive immersion programs in reading, writing or math for K-8

– The Academy will provide programs for high school students who are at risk of dropping out, behind in graduation credits, or need alternative schedules to fit their lifestyles or work schedules to catch up in order to receive a diploma.

– It offers private-paid learning tutoring sessions.