This week I had the opportunity to hear Rob Jackson, the Community Relations and Communications Liaison for Union County Schools, speak about the progress, programs, and latest news involving UCPS. As both an agent and a Union county mom, I appreciated the wealth of information he shared with Allen Tate Realtors. The standout of the statistics were the performance scores for the Union county school district overall as well as some notable scores for individual schools. According to the UCPS Information Guide 2012-2013, these are some highlights:
- Total number of schools – 53
- Total enrollment 40,958
- Number of 2012 High School Graduates- 2,520
- Percentage of 2012 Graduates Who Plan to Attend College- 89%
- AIG Students- 15.8%
- Union County ranks #2 among NC’s 60 largest school districts in percentage of schools that met No Child Left Behind, AMO goals
- 6th largest school system in the state
- 20 Honor Schools of Excellence
- Marvin Elementary, Weddington Elementary, and Weddington Middle have been Honor Schools of Excellence every year since opening.
Highest performing elementary schools for the most recent period were Rea View (97.2%), Weddington (97.1%), and Marvin (96.7%).
Highest performing middle schools for the most recent period were Weddington (97.2%), Cuthbertson (96.3%), and Marvin Ridge (96.0%).
Highest performing high schools for the most recent period were UCECollege (99.6%), CATA (99.1%), and Marvin Ridge (98.6%).
Upcoming changes include expanding the technology usage by offering a laptop/netbook to every student in the district. Currently, grades 6-9 are covered and this program has been successful in teaching students everyday computer skills.
Programs that may be of interest to parents include the International Baccalaureate program offered at Marvin Ridge High School and the language immersion programs offered at three elementary schools. The IB program is a rigorous curriculum opportunity offered to any student in the district with applications due in February. Space is limited as this is a very popular and competitive program available to rising Juniors with a track record of academic excellence. You can get more information by clicking here.
UCPS will offer immersion programs for Chinese and Spanish to children starting in kindergarten. These classes are limited to a small number of interested students and daily instruction will be conducted by a teacher in their native language. It is the intent to expand this program to additional grades as the children are promoted. Currently, Mandarin Chinese is offered at Marvin Elementary and Spanish (SPLASH) is offered at Sun Valley and Shiloh Elementary schools.
For high school students, Union county schools are bringing back some vocational classes. Certain schools in the district will offer classes in air conditioning, plumbing, etc, where the student is able to graduate with specific skills for employment.
Other recent changes in Union county schools are the new Common Core standards for students. These changes may impact testing scores this year not only for UCPS but for all NC schools. Mr. Jackson said that testing scores are expected to decline statewide but he is confident that Union county will remain one of the top rated districts in the state.
If you want your child to benefit from a Union county education, email me today at nancy.wilkins@allentate.com and we can get started on the search for your new home.
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