Stoneham High School gains more recognition
Published on January 13th, 1999
STONEHAM, MA - When you're in the business of educating youngsters, the satisfaction of seeing that student mature, graduate and succeed in his/her life after high school are tremendous rewards. Most educators don't seek accolades for their work or recognition for their great efforts.
At Stoneham High School, however, it is hard to avoid the accolades. In January of 1996, the Stoneham school system was listed as one of the "100 Best Value School Districts" by Money Magazine, and, just this week, SHS was cited as one of the top schools in the Boston area by U.S. News and World Reports.
How does it feel?
"Certainly it's always a plus to be in a listing that is based on a quality standard by a national magazine," Principal Thomas Ryan said Wednesday morning. "It's a plus for the school, the students and the teachers. You're always pleased when that happens.
"It's always nice to see your school in print in a positive manner."
U.S. News conducted its research in conjunction with the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago and based the "sophisticated 'value added' statistical model" on four criteria: State test scores, percentage of students taking the SAT or ACT tests, advanced placement test taking and persistence rate (number of students in grades 9 through 12 who complete the school year).
These criteria were then applied to 1,053 high schools in six major metropolitan areas: Boston, Detroit, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Atlanta and New York.
In the Boston area, Stoneham High School ranked among the top 16.
"I totally agree with the criteria," stated Superintendent Joseph Connelly, adding that it is the fairest way to compare vastly different schools in the area.
The superintendent bestowed much of the credit on the work of his educational staff and also on the community as a whole.
"The community really supports the schools," he said. "And I honestly believe that we do have a staff that is happy and content in their workplace. I think the staff believes the community appreciates the work they're doing."
This comfort, he said, has translated into a healthy learning environment at Stoneham High School.
"When you have a staff that's very valued and feels appreciated, it shows in their work. Clearly, Stoneham has a very exceptional school system."
Ryan stated that the way in which U.S. News weighted their research played right into the hands of the High School.
"We do a good job of challenging and motivating students to reach a little higher than that student normally would do by themselves. I think those types of schools were what they were looking for. Under those types of criteria, we seemed to excel.
"We have an outstanding public school here."
The following are the 16 schools cited by U.S. news in the Boston area:
Urban Public Schools
Boston Latin Academy
Boston Latin School
BMC Durfee
Lawrence
Lowell
Lynn Classical
South High Community School
Suburban Public Schools
Ashland
Dartmouth
Lexington
Saugus
Shepherd Hill Regional
Stoneham
Catholic Schools
Boston College High School
Malden Catholic
Xaverian Broth
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