Ruidoso schools move to top quarter of state ranks

The Ruidoso public school system has received its highest ever state performance grade, which now ranks local schools in or near the top quarter of New Mexico’s 89 school districts.

The “B” grade from the state Public Education Department is the top mark ever achieved by the Ruidoso Municipal School District under the current evaluation system.

Although the good news has been expected since the latest round of individual school grades, which were also the best ever, board members and administrators were delighted.

“Improving from a ‘D’ rating three years ago was achieved through the considerable efforts of our educators, staff and students,” said school board president Greg Cory.  “The board appreciates the efforts of all involved in this process.”

“It was the cumulative effort of staff, students and parents, said RMSD Supt. George Bickert, “all of us working together for positive outcomes for our kids and schools.”

Ruidoso was one of 18 school districts that earned B grades, including the Los Alamos school district which customarily ranks at or near the top.

Only six districts received A’s, all of them among the smallest in the state. Cloudcroft and Corona were among them. Total combined enrollment for the six “A” districts is 1,500. By contrast, Ruidoso’s student population, far from the largest, is 1,979.

Capitan School District joined Ruidoso in the “B” column. The state’s biggest school district, Albuquerque with 90,000 students, slipped to a “D” this year, PED said.

Following its own “D” three years ago, Ruidoso’s district grade for the past two years has stood at C. But Bickert said the bump to B, while welcome, is not an occasion for relaxing in the quest for excellence.

Most of a district's grade is based on the average scores of its individual schools, which is why local officials expected to move up after seeing the most recent Ruidoso school grades. But other measurements such as graduation rates, student achievement, school board member training and parent surveys are also factored in.

“We’re not going to stop until we’re the best school district in New Mexico,” he said, and then quickly moved the goal line back even further.

“As a state we’re ranked lowest in the nation,” he said. “We want to compare favorably with national standards.”

In two areas the superintendent said Ruidoso has already shown that local students have what it takes to reach higher performance levels.

Pointing to a hand-written chart in his office that scores Ruidoso schools against state and national averages, Bickert noted that 10th and 11th graders at Ruidoso High School exceed both.