For most high school seniors in Lee County, May marks the happy milestone of graduation.

For far too many local teens, though, May holds little promise of a rosy future, much less a chance to don cap and gown.

According to numbers released Thursday by the School District of Lee County, the percentage of at-risk students re-taking and passing the FCAT or an acceptable testing equivalent is nothing short of abysmal:

Of the 777 seniors who retook the reading portion of the test this year in a last-hope effort to receive a high school diploma, only 19 percent passed the FCAT or an equivalent test. Of the 312 students who retook the mathematics portion, only 31 percent passed.

While the district will tell us that these numbers are “better” than last year’s, what this still means is that more than 600 teens will not graduate with their classes this month nor will they receive a diploma at all unless they retake the test again, (as they can this summer,) and pass. If they do not, all these students will have is a “certificate of completion” to mark their passage through the public school system.

We think this is a shame.

While 600 kids within what is one of the state’s largest districts may not sound like many, understand that these are the few that have persevered — the real “failure” rate is much higher.

The students retaking the FCAT as seniors are the ones who have continued to go to class in an effort to pass the basic skills tests that were first administered in 10th grade.

We certainly commend them for this.

However, these students are just the tip of the iceberg that floats beneath the waters of sunny press releases touting percentage point “improvements” in an academic system fraught with failure, including graduation rate numbers that hover just below the state average — which is bad enough at approximately 72 percent.

What the real numbers mean is that nearly one-third of the ninth graders entering high school here will not graduate, giving up long before they get to that last before-graduation-day FCAT.

For minority students, the picture is far bleaker: Lee County graduates less than half.

The seeds of failure are planted as early as third grade with scores of children held back because they can not meet minimum standards in reading and math. Many are held back again because they can not meet those standards in eighth grade, either, dropping out later as a result of failures for which the district certainly bears some responsibility.

As the school district enters its budget workshops this summer, we urge our administrators and school board members to keep these numbers in mind — they are scarier by far than projections of decreasing revenues. Lose a child and the potential impact in lost wages and lost potential will continue far beyond these tough economic times.

We also ask our school officials to understand that it’s more than “putting money in classrooms;” it’s putting money into educational programs that provide the basic skill sets that our children need to succeed.

It’s taking the hard position to cut any spending that will not directly result in an improved educational experience for Lee County students.

It’s refusing to hand out raises that are not contractually mandated but, instead, implementing a real wage freeze on increases for administrative personnel up to and including the superintendent.

It’s scrutinizing every expenditure for travel, training, studies and other perks that remain available to district personnel as well as every administrative post, position and program that, again, cannot be directly linked to the district’s core mission, to educate the children of Lee County.

The district has not proven itself adept at properly prioritizing its available resources in the best of economic times.

With the worst of times still ahead, this is a concept our school officials must grasp.

For failure to take this lesson to heart will mean more children left behind. And that’s the one thing Lee County cannot afford.



— Breeze editorial