Lake Hamilton strives for success in all areas

An open letter to the patrons of the Lake Hamilton School District and the greater Hot Springs and Garland County community:

The argument that some schools emphasize athletics above academic progress is not a new one. The criticism of financial allocations between scholastic and athletic programs provoked, in part, the seminal Supreme Court case Pickering v. Board of Education. That case was heard in 1968. No doubt the same debate raged long before and continues to this day in many communities across the country. This concern is certainly not new to Lake Hamilton School District or many other schools which have experienced some notoriety for their athletic success and have been unfairly stereotyped as athletic-oriented institutions.

In our 2013 millage campaign to fund construction projects, we faced detractors claiming that the district spent more on athletics than its other programs. We successfully countered by informing our voting public of the facts. Our athletic spending holds at a steady 3 percent of our annual operating budgets. In the years preceding the most recent millage election, only 17 percent of capital improvement projects were athletic in nature. Under current leadership, $48.5 million has been allocated to academic facilities, while at the time of the last millage election, $4.2 million had been dedicated to athletic projects.

During multiple community meetings held throughout the last campaign, many parents and voters shared that they could not support a school tax increase unless the proposal included a new gymnasium. How could we disagree with our public from whom our authority ultimately emanates? Our community made it known with their collective voice that they expect their local school to have excellent facilities for all programs offered. And they overwhelmingly agreed to pay for it. Any adjacent city or community may not have the same goals as ours. Theirs is not our fight. Our job is to meet our community's expectations by educating the 4,500 students who attend Lake Hamilton Schools.

The issue of academics vs. athletics in our district was raised yet again with the recent release of state-assigned grades. Without any empirical data, some claims surfaced that LHSD's four B's and two C's were evidence that athletics supersedes academics in our list of priorities. Those who make this leap of faith assume that an average academic performance indicated by these new grades translates to less support for learning than for sports. We believe that the grades don't accurately reflect our academic performance or the emphasis we place on teaching and learning.

This new grading scheme purports to provide simplicity and clarity to our public and parents regarding our schools' performance. At least that was the purpose of the lawmakers who supported this new system. Once the statisticians got their computing hands on it, the system designed to arrive at transparency and straightforwardness with a simple A-F designation became complex and unclear. The result, we contend, is misleading and confusing.

Consider that Lake Hamilton Junior High School was recognized this year as one of the top 10 percent academically performing schools in the state. The school even received $61,710 in additional state funds recognizing their high level of academic performance. Yet, the new grading system assigned this school a "C" based on the same data that earned them the top 10 percent designation.

And while we congratulate those schools designated with A's, our student performance on the state assessments across our district were higher, much higher in some cases, than schools which were given A's. In fact, based on the standardized test scores alone, using the common "90-100 equals A" grading scale, LHSD schools have earned five A's and one B. We hope to see reform in the grading system to achieve what the policymakers originally intended, a fair assessment which accurately recognizes academic performance.

It is worth noting that the same Lake Hamilton School recognized as one of the highest performing academic schools in the state has also earned dozens of titles and championships in athletics and band. Athletic and academic excellence are not exclusive of one another. Lake Hamilton Junior High, and others, prove that case.

Student success both within and beyond the classroom is worthy of pride and celebration. We strive to excel in the wide array of endeavors which comprise a child's education. We believe our community supports our efforts and is proud of their school and its goal of comprehensive academic improvement, to earn A's. And to be the best in anything else that we set out to do.

Assistant Superintendent Shawn Higginbotham

Lake Hamilton School District

Editorial on 05/03/2015

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