The Hinesville Rotary Club heard from Liberty County School administrators on the state of the district and its plans at the club’s meeting last week.
Rotarian and LCSS Superintendent Dr. Valya Lee introduced Dr. Jennifer Walts and Susan Avant as “two individuals who are very instrumental in the work that goes on in our district.”
Walts, LCSS’s director of assessment and accountability, talked about student achievement.
“Our goal is for students to be ready to make a successful transition from the Liberty County School System into college, career or military,” she said.
Walts said LCSS students meet or exceed state averages in several standardized testing areas. The district also exceeds the state graduation rate, according to Walts.
Avant, the executive director of LCSS’s teaching and learning department, talked about improvements within her department and its goals.
One program, Retired Educators Supporting Student Learning and Achievement, has markedly improved reading and math skills in students who are more than two years below grade level in those areas, Avant said.
Through the program, retired teachers contract to work one-on-one or in small groups with students who need individual instruction.
“We’ve had students who have gone up as much as four grade levels in six weeks (through the RESSLA program),” she said.
Prior to the presentation, club President Brigitte Shanken updated members on last week’s fundraiser for the American Red Cross campaign.
According to Shanken, WTOC reporter Dal Cannady collected $891 during a walk through the county. She said the bartending fundraiser, which was sponsored by the Rotary Club and the Liberty County Chamber of Commerce, netted $2,765, for a grand total of $3,656 raised in Liberty County.