Summary:
The city of Hughesville, Pennsylvania is home to two schools - Hughesville Junior/Senior High School and Joseph C Ashkar Elementary School, both part of the East Lycoming School District. While the elementary school has maintained a relatively strong statewide ranking, the high school has seen a significant decline in its performance, dropping from 215th out of 537 Pennsylvania high schools in 2020-2021 to 467th out of 674 in 2022-2023.
Academically, the students at Joseph C Ashkar Elementary generally outperform the state averages in PSSA Math and ELA, with particularly strong science scores in grade 4. In contrast, students at Hughesville Junior/Senior High School outperform the state in PSSA Math and ELA for grades 7 and 8, but underperform in Keystone Exams for Algebra I, Biology, and Literature in grade 11. The high school also boasts a strong 95.2% four-year graduation rate and a low 0.5% dropout rate.
Demographically, both schools have student populations that are predominantly white, significantly higher than the state averages. The elementary school also has a higher percentage of students eligible for free/reduced lunch at 46.07%, compared to 31.99% at the high school. This suggests that the community may be facing greater economic challenges at the younger grade levels. The higher per-student spending at the high school level, $15,353 compared to $14,300 at the elementary school, does not appear to be translating into improved academic outcomes, indicating a need to re-evaluate resource allocation and spending priorities.
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