Albuquerque Public Schools
APS Rising in Action: Celebrating Student Outcomes and School Success
In her weekly message, Superintendent Blakey thanks staff for their hard work and urges continued focus.
Three years ago, Albuquerque Public Schools began an important journey with the adoption of four five-year goals aimed at ensuring that our students are prepared to thrive in the world when they leave us.
Since then, we’ve come up with a strategic plan, or road map, to help us improve third-grade reading and eighth-grade math proficiency, graduate students ready for the college or career of their choice, and equip them with the skills, habits and mindsets for success in school and in life.
Our APS Rising plan is continually evolving as we lean into the work, explore better ways to tackle our goals, and ensure our initiatives align. One thing that has not changed is that APS Rising is first and foremost about measurable student outcomes, and I’m happy to say that the work we’ve been doing is already starting to pay dividends.
Take Lew Wallace Elementary School, which improved its Language Arts proficiency rate by 8.8 percentage points in last year’s state assessment. Growth like that doesn’t just happen. It takes discipline and commitment. Lew Wallace Elementary School staff rolled up their sleeves and focused on small-group instruction and progress monitoring. They also focused on Tier 1 instruction and strong intervention systems.
This is what APS Rising looks like in action!
Lew Wallace Elementary isn’t the only school making gains.
Tres Volcanes Community Collaborative has focused heavily on fostering a sense of belonging among its students and, in the process, has improved school attendance. Intentional family outreach and consistent expectations are making a difference at the school.
We all know that improving attendance is critical to improving outcomes, which makes what’s happening at Tres Volcanes all the more important. We can’t teach students if they’re not in school, and the more school they miss, the greater the risk that they fall behind.
And congratulations to Del Norte High School for leaning into our postsecondary-readiness goal and engaging students in diverse career pathways. That work includes partnering with outside organizations to expose their students to various careers in the trades and give them a leg up in pursuing great careers. The growth Del Norte is seeing in this area is noteworthy. Del Norte staff have aligned their work to support their students, and the coherence they’ve achieved across instruction, counseling and career-connected learning is laudable.
These are just three examples of the amazing work happening throughout our district. The successes they’re enjoying are a reminder of the importance of consistent systems and structure districtwide.
I am grateful to our principals and teachers for staying focused and for all they’re doing to mold our students into critical thinkers, problem solvers and good communicators. But I also want to thank everyone else, from our school secretaries and cafeteria workers to our Maintenance & Operations crews and bus drivers, who keep everything running so our students can thrive.
This work is challenging, but I know that we’re up to the task. We need to keep refining what we’re doing and stay disciplined.
Culture shifts take time, but as Lew Wallace, Tres Volcanes and Del Norte show us, we’re gaining momentum!
Have a great weekend.