Rod Kelley School Honored For Closing Achievement Gaps

GILROY, CA — The Rod Kelley Elementary School was recognized Saturday for making significant strides toward closing the achievement gap for low-income Latino students in mathematics as determined by Innovate Public Schools, the Gilroy Unified School District announced.

Rod Kelley on Kern Avenue was ranked No. 15 out of the 51 selected.

Innovate Public Schools released a few days before its fourth annual research report identifying schools in the San Francisco Bay Area that are closing achievement gaps. To qualify for the list, a school must have achieved results for low-income Latino or African American students that outperform the statewide average for all students in one or more factors including math and English scores and college eligibility rates. The school must also maintain low suspension rates.

Superintendent Deborah A. Flores mentioned not being surprised at the designation.

“Rod Kelley staff continue to take the lead in many areas of curriculum and instruction while faithfully implementing district initiatives and textbook adoptions, which has led to great results for students. The professional development, collaboration among teachers and leadership has also been very strong,” Flores said.

The schools in this report are all public schools (including both district and charter) that do not have selective admissions.

Innovate Public Schools is a nonprofit organization working to ensure all students receive an equal chance at a world-class public education.