School report cards tell positive story

The percentage of Long Island high school graduates earning basic Regents diplomas continues to inch up, and some school leaders say it's time for more students to aim for higher credentials.

Those leaders add, however, that all progress could stall if their schools get hit next year as expected with big reductions in state financial aid.

But for now, figures for the Class of 2010 look pretty good. Islandwide, 91.3 percent of those seniors obtained Regents diplomas - up from 90.5 percent in 2009 and just 41 percent in 1989. That's according to annual state "report cards" released Thursday by the state Education Department.

The statewide percentage rose to 83 percent for last year, from 81 percent the previous year.

Districts showing substantial gains include Hempstead, where 63 percent of graduates earned Regents diplomas last year, compared with 55 percent the year before. Westbury's numbers increased to 83 percent from 77 percent.

However, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's call to cut nearly $250 million of the Island's school aid has many local educators worried. They warn that such reductions would inevitably cause some districts to save money by trimming a daily period from high school schedules - time now used for remedial instruction.

"I have no doubt this will have an effect, because those support classes are the ones you would tend to lose," said Lorna Lewis, the East Williston schools chief. She heads a curriculum committee for the Nassau County Council of School Superintendents.

Cuomo, who is trying to erase a state budget deficit, contends that most districts can cushion the impact of aid cuts by dipping into cash reserves and renegotiating employee contracts. He also wants to amend the state's aid-distribution formula, so more money goes to districts that boost test scores.

"As a matter of fact, I want to increase student performance," the governor said in a radio interview earlier this week.

Since 1995, the state has pushed the goal of Regents diplomas for all students, except those with disabilities. To earn basic credentials, students have to pass Regents exams in five subjects, including algebra.

Research suggests, however, that students meeting just those minimum requirements are not well-prepared for college. For that reason, many local school leaders want teens to aim higher, by earning Regents exams with "advanced designation." This means passing exams in eight or nine subjects, including trigonometry. Barely half of the Island's students currently graduate with such designation.

Those leaders say it makes more sense for students to take more challenging courses, such as trigonometry, than to strive for better scores in easier courses such as algebra. Some state policymakers, such as Meryl Tisch of Manhattan, chancellor of the state Board of Regents, are pressing for higher cutoff scores in algebra and English.