Viewing party planned for Ashland School District staff to watch The Kelly Clarkson Show on Thursday

By Holly Dillemuth, Ashland.news 

The Oregon Department of Education released 2024-25 Oregon Statewide Assessment System scores (OSAS) earlier this month, with the numbers showing overall gains for Ashland schools and students testing above the state average in English Language Arts (ELA), math and science, but also declines in math scores among some middle and high school students.

Joseph Hattrick, superintendent of Ashland School District, during the most recent board meeting also expressed excitement that Ashland schools are, he said, No. 1 in Southern Oregon for district-wide test scores, in addition to being among the top-10 districts statewide for ELA, math and science scores.

“The state doesn’t rank our districts, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t,” Hattrick told school board members at the Oct. 9 district board meeting.

Hattrick also expressed enthusiasm that Ashland ranks sixth out of 183 districts in the state for ELA and math, while ranking ninth in the state in science.

“In Southern Oregon, we’re No. 1,” Hattrick said. “That’s pretty outstanding.”

Hattrick noted that science scores are consistent with what’s being seen across the state. 

Hattrick reported the following to school board members:

English Language Arts (ELA)

Hattrick said Ashland students demonstrated exceptional gains this year, with 67.7% of students meeting or exceeding state standards — up by 7.7 points from 2023-24. 

“This improvement is nearly double the growth seen statewide, where proficiency rose modestly to 43%,” Hattrick said in a written statement.

The largest gains occurred for third-graders with an increase of 14.8 points; fifth-graders with an increase of 9.6 points, and 11th-graders with an increase in 18.9 points, reflecting strong literacy development at both foundational and secondary levels.

Mathematics

Math proficiency increased to 51.1%, far surpassing the state average of 31.5%, Hattrick said. 

While Ashland maintained overall growth with an increase of 1.1 points, Hattrick called progress in grades 3 (increase of 14.4 points) and 6 (an increase of 9.9 points) “notable,” showing “early-grade numeracy strength.”

Hattrick said that, like most Oregon districts, middle and high school math results (Grades 8 and 11) declined, aligning with state and national trends in post-pandemic math recovery.

Science

Ashland school’s science proficiency held steady at 48.3%, well above the state average of 30%.

High school students showed strong improvement, Hattrick said, with Grade 11 proficiency climbing from 45% to 51.6%, marking one of the district’s most promising turnarounds.

“We saw some growth in math, but really good growth in ELA,” Hattrick said.

Eighth and 11th graders showed the most decline, aligning with post-pandemic recovery.

“We’re going to be really looking at that to figure out how to remedy that and the causes for it,” Hattrick said.

School board member Dan Ruby asked how Hattrick is feeling about the results and about how they will inform his plan going into the new school year.

“I feel great about it,” Hattrick said. “If you think about all that our students and our staff and our district went through last year, we wouldn’t have predicted this level of growth. It shows the grit, the tenacity, the commitment of our staff and students. It tells me that there is nothing that will get in the way of learning.

“But, what it also tells me is, we still have a long way to go,” he added. “As a superintendent, am I ever going to be okay or happy with 67%, 51%? No. I’ll be happy when we’ve got 100% of our students meeting or exceeding standards and so we just continue to look at that.”

Next month, schools will report to Hattrick on school improvement plans.

“One of the things you’ll be hearing is, ‘How do we ensure that our students who are meeting standards can begin exceeding standards?’ and the students who aren’t meeting standards can begin meeting standards,” Hattrick said.

In other school board business:

• Hattrick announced Ashland Schools Foundation (ASF) is hosting a semi-private screening off district property of the Kelly Clarkson Show in Ashland on Thursday afternoon. For those who wish to watch the show, it airs at 4 p.m. on NBC and will feature Hattrick and Erica Thompson, the director of ASF, as well as district staff and students.

Hattrick and Thompson spent several days in New York City for the filming of the show earlier this fall, which will highlight a $890,000 donation gifted to the district earlier this year in light of the district’s significant budget crisis. The show is also slated to highlight the reaction from students and staff that followed the contribution.

“I want to make it clear, it’s not to celebrate our appearance,” Hattrick said of the viewing party. “It’s an opportunity to celebrate the sacrifices and commitment of our staff, both last year and this year.”

• Hattrick also announced the district held its first equity committee, an advisory committee to the superintendent, in mid-September. 

The group, made up of students and staff, will advise Hattrick on “educational equity impacts” of policy decisions and help inform Hattrick of experiences of underserved communities on campus.

“We’re currently in the process of determining the structure of that group,” Hattrick said. 

Reach Ashland.news reporter Holly Dillemuth at [email protected].