August 26, 2003
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Dr. Bert L’Homme, Associate Superintendent, Instructional Services, 560-3716
DURHAM—The average score for Durham Public Schools seniors taking the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) reached its highest ever, a five-point jump from last year, and the largest increase in five years. Durham seniors posted the third highest participation rate out of 117 districts in the state of North Carolina.
Durham Public Schools seniors averaged 999 on the SAT in 2003, five points above last year’s average of 994. This result breaks the 12-year-old “saw- tooth” pattern of increases every other year. For the first time since 1991, there have been two consecutive years of increases in the average SAT score.
Durham Public Schools is now only two points below the state average of 1001, slashing last year’s four-point gap in half.
Highlights of this year’s SAT results include:
For the third consecutive year, three high schools scored above the national average of 1026. Durham School of the Arts seniors posted an average SAT score of 1078, which is 52 points above the national average; Jordan High School seniors scored an average of 1061, or 35 points above peers nationwide; and Riverside High School seniors came in 13 points above the national average at 1039. Northern High School saw the largest increase this year over last, gaining 19 points, from 959 to 978; Southern High’s average jumped 15 points, 844 to 859. Durham Public Schools had the third highest participation rate in the state (behind Dare and Chapel Hill-Carrboro), with 80 percent of all seniors taking the test. Durham was first among the state’s largest school districts in participation (Wake, Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Cumberland, Guilford, Winston-Salem/Forsyth). African-American students in Durham Public Schools posted a lower average over last year (851, down seven points from 858), but outscored their peers across the state by 12 points (839). Durham Public Schools African-American seniors averaged six points below their national counterparts (857). White students hit their highest mark ever with an average score of 1110, up 16 points from last year, and outscoring their state peers by 60 points on average (1050 for the state) and 47 points nationally (1063 for the U.S.). Hispanic students taking the SAT scored an average 954, a six-point increase over last year (948), and seven points below this year’s state average of 961, but 42 points above the national average for their counterparts (912). The SAT is typically used for college admission information. The test is divided into verbal and mathematics sections worth 800 points each, with the highest possible score being 1600.
“The largest overall gain in average SAT scores in five years is wonderful, but we must continue to focus on strategies that will ensure success for all students,” said Superintendent Ann T. Denlinger. “We will continue implementation of the College Board Initiative, which offers extra assistance to those students who need it and we will redouble our efforts to identify additional methods that will yield higher scores for all students. Greater student participation in advanced placement courses will continue to be a priority.”
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Attachments: US, NC and DPS SAT Performance: 1992-93 through 2001-02 SAT Performance: 1989-90 through 2002-03 DPS 2002-03 SAT Outcomes by High School African-American/White SAT Performance for DPS, NC and US
