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news
December 27, 2023
School report card grades good, but could use improvement
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR,

According to the Oklahoma Department of Education, “Report card measures … serve as indicators of how public schools are serving students in a variety of areas. Measured at different points, indicators work together to provide a snapshot of school performance.”

Eufaula schools’ report cards, issued by the Department of Education Nov. 15, fared well in the 2022-2023. The report is from testing in the spring of 2022.

Most school grades in the district surpass overall state grades.

“We’ve shown growth throughout the district, and improvement is always going to be our goal,” said School Superintendent Monty Guthrie. “But at the same time, our priority is always going to be on creating great citizen, on meeting the needs of the whole child as opposed to only focusing on grades, but if that leads us to greater tests, we’re going to be thrilled – but that is going to be secondary.”

For the most part, tests in the 2021-22, and 2022-23 school years have shown a lot of growth.

“The middle school was a B school this year, barely missed an A. Our high school was right on the verge of moving up to a B; so those things are positives for us,” Guthrie said. “We are going to continue to get better in those areas. I feel certain of that. We are definitely making an all out district- wide effort to improve our math scores.

“We’ve committed a lot of time and effort into professional development into trying to see if we can’t bump those scores up, do better in that area.”

The next tests will b e in the middle of April, first week in May.

The state’s grading system is far from perfect.

For example, the state only tests students once during their high school years.

Elementary and middle school students are tested annually to determine their progress. In high school they are tested once, in their first year.

“We are doing everything we can to monitor progress in high school, but it’s difficult to monitor progress … when you are only testing one time,” Guthrie said.

He said steps have been taken to correct that issue.

The district has signed up with NWEA – the Northwest Evaluation Association, a non-profit organization that has assessed over 4.5 million students.

“We take a benchmark assessment in January, and then we will do it again at the end of the school year. We’ll be able to compare the progress it will show on state tests and the progress we show on our own benchmark. We want to make sure they score alike.”

NWEA testing is the first time the school has had the testing option in the 9th, 10th and 11th grades.

A new twist also is being added to the school’s ACT and SAT testing, the tests most colleges and universities use to make admissions decisions.

The state used ACT tests, which are timed, multi-choice exams normally given in the junior year.

Taking a timed test might seem daunting to some students, who might not do well because of the anxiety over the timing.

To help the junior prepare for the ACT, Guthrie said the school is going to pay for ACT tests for sophomores.

“That’s going to give us some data to look at to see if we need to adjust our 11th grade English Language Arts and math. And number two, it will give them the opportunity to work through the ACT with time restraints.”

Paying for the ACT for sophomores may not always be possible.

“There may be some financial restraints. We may not always be able to do that, but I think it’s a worthwhile investment for the kids,” he said.

Not all students are going to go on to college after graduation.

“Between trades and military and college, it’s right around 50 percent,” Guthrie said.

What the school is trying to do is to determine students for college and career readiness.

Jefferson Highway keeps on rollin’
A: Main, news
Jefferson Highway keeps on rollin’
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
Long before Route 66, there was the Jefferson Highway. Route 66 was a federally funded, 2,448-mile highway that crossed the country going east and west from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, Californ...
A: Main, news
Jacob Foos re-hired as Eufaula City Manager
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
It was a surprise hire, but not a total surprise as former Eufaula City Manager Jacob Foos was rehired as Eufaula’s city manager. The hiring took place following an executive session at a special meet...
A: Main, news
Complications of finding a city manager
June 11, 2025
Jeb Jones resigned as city manager in April. He was hired in 2022 to replace Jacob Foos, who had resigned months earlier and became assistant city manager in the City of Shawnee. Andrea Weckmuel-ler B...
A: Main, news
LEA Poker Run Saturday
June 11, 2025
The Golden Eagle Poker Run, one of the most popular events on Lake Eufaula, is Saturday, June 14. This year’s theme is Pirates & Parrots, so get your crew and costumes ready for a day of high seas adv...
McIntosh County Democrat wins Sequoyah Award
A: Main, news
McIntosh County Democrat wins Sequoyah Award
June 11, 2025
The Oklahoma Press Association presented its Better Newspaper Contest Awards during the OPA Annual convention June 6-7, at the Grand Casino Hotel and Resort in Shawnee. The top award a newspaper can r...
A: Main, news
Commissioners getting an increase in road spending
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
Rep. Tim Turner, R-Kinta, announced some good news and some bad news at the Monday morning Monthly County Commissioner meeting. First, the bad news, at least for those who oppose wind turbines in the ...
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Bridge dedicated to World War II veteran
A: Main, news
Bridge dedicated to World War II veteran
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation recently honored the late veteran William “Bill” Antrum Fox Jr. by naming a bridge after him. The William A. Fox Jr. Memorial Bridge is on SH 9 East at Nine M...
A: Main, news
Ten Mile Yard Sale this weekend
June 11, 2025
Bring an umbrella Bargain hunters set your alarms. The annual 10-milelong yard sale begins at 7 a.m. Sunday, stretching from the east end of Eufaula, down SH 9 east through Longtown and past Enterpris...
Preliminary set for 2 suspected of killing Eufaulan
news
Preliminary set for 2 suspected of killing Eufaulan
June 11, 2025
Two Muskogee men charged with killing a Eufaula resident were ordered to appear at a preliminary hearing in district court at 10 a.m., Thursday, July 3. Suspects Kyren Omari Boulware, 19, and Michael ...
2 dead, 4 injured in pileup
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2 dead, 4 injured in pileup
June 11, 2025
Two people from Marshall, Texas were killed, and four others were injured in a harrowing four-vehicle pileup on U.S. 69 half a mile south of the Muskogee City Limits at about 2:20 p.m. on Monday, June...
Fink inducted into OPA Half Century Club
news
Fink inducted into OPA Half Century Club
June 11, 2025
Managing Editor Jerry Fink of The Eufaula Indian Journal and the McIntosh County Democrat was inducted into the Oklahoma Press Association Half Century Club on Saturday, June 7 at the Grand in Shawnee...
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