WIBC: 12 Schools Receive Cash Rewards for Boosting Graduation Rates

Indiana has handed out 220-thousand dollars in bonuses to the 12 high schools which made the biggest gains in their graduation rates.
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All 12 schools improved by 12 percentage points or more from 2009 to 2010.

Two of the three biggest gainers are Indianapolis charter schools. Fall Creek Academy posted the biggest gain in the state, jumping by 28 percentage points. The Charles A. Tindley Accelerated School improved its graduation rate by 19 points. It's now a hair above the statewide average of 78-percent.

No other Indianapolis-area schools made the list.

Tindley CEO Marcus Robinson says charter status gives the school flexibility to change theschedule, keeping students in school longer to ensure they get the help they need. But he says the primary reason for the school's success isn't its freedom as a charter, but its approach to education.

"We didn't try to be a comprehensive high school," Robinson says. "We've got one set of curricula that every kid has to swim through. (It) helps us to understand what kids need in order to make it through that curriculum."

Other schools credit tutoring programs or use of technology to help students who need extra instruction. State school superintendent Tony Bennett says the common thread among all 12 schools is a commitment not to let students fail.

10 schools will receive 20-thousand dollars each in bonus money. The state created a separate bonus pool for high schools with fewer than 300 students, with two schools receiving 10-thousand-dollar awards.

Principals and superintendents decide whether to divide the money among some or all of their teachers, or keep it themselves.

Along with the two charter schools, high schools receiving 20-thousand-dollar bonuses are Argos, Austin, Kankakee Valley, Caston, Rochester, Shakamak, Mississinewa and Seeger. North White and Medora High Schools received 10-thousand-dollar awards.

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