Island SBA scores rank among highest in state

Smarter Balance Assessment (SBA) test results for local elementary and middle school students showed Mercer Island third- through eighth-graders faring quite well.

Mercer Island SBA scores primarily ranked among the top five school districts in the state, with many ranking in the top two, Mercer Island School District administrator Jennifer Wright told the School Board on Oct. 22.

Mercer Island third- through fifth-graders ranked in the top two for both English Language Arts (ELA) and Math SBA proficiency scores. Grades 6-8 ranked in the top five for math proficiency, while ELA scores for sixth-graders ranked fifth, and eighth-graders sixth, in the state.

Seventh grade ELA was the only area in which Mercer Island scores did not to rank in the top 10.

“We are looking very seriously at the school level about why that score is so much lower than the general cohorts,” Wright said.

Mercer Island did experience a high SBA opt-out rate at the 11th grade level, with nearly 80 percent refusing to take the test. But results for students who did take the exam showed 81 percent and 84 percent met ELA and math proficiency, respectively. Nearly 98 percent of 10th grade students met the proficiency level on the ELA exit exam.

“From a standpoint of comparing ourselves to other performances in the state of Washington, we have done well,” Wright said.

MISF halfway to winter goal

As of Monday morning, the Mercer Island Schools Foundation (MISF) raised $286,295 from it’s annual Phone-A-Thon fall fundraising campaign.

“This event for Mercer Island students wouldn’t be possible without the volunteers who made phone calls to our community,” MISF executive director Penny Yantis said.

MISF set its winter fundraising goal at $499,300, and will still be accepting donations through Dec. 31. Money raised is used for classroom-based support and will go toward school improvement plan funding, curriculum, enrichment, classroom materials and text books. Over 3200 phone calls were made by some 200 volunteers.

“The donations provide the leverage the school district needs to ensure an exceptional educational experience for every Mercer Island student,” Yantis said. “What we really need now is for everyone to return their pledge envelopes or jump online and show their support.”

For more on how to make a donation, visit http://mercerislandschoolsfoundation.com/fundraising/.

MIYFS seeks holiday sponsors

The city of Mercer Island Youth and Family Service Department (YFS) is recruiting sponsors for its annual holiday assistance program that provides gift cards to Island children and families in need.

Sponsors are confidentially matched with a qualified Island family and asked to provide one gift card per child to help brighten the holiday season.

Interested sponsors should contact Cheryl Manriquez, MIYFS family assistance coordinator, at 206-275-7869. Sponsors are asked to register before Nov. 9.