Compare Sugar Grove Academy with Pershing Middle School

Sugar Grove Academy earned a State accountability rating of B (80-89) based on three domains: student achievement, school progress and closing the gaps. Scores are scaled from 0 to 100 to align with letter grades. The school scored 55 in student achievement, 85 in school progress and 79 in closing performance gaps. It scored 83 overall in post-secondary readiness, a broad term that refers to student preparedness to undertake multiple pathways after graduation, or specifically, their preparedness for college education.

On the other hand, Pershing Middle School also earned a State accountability rating of B. The school posted 85 in student achievement, 90 in school progress, 87 in closing performance gaps and 89 overall in post-secondary readiness.

A distinction designation acknowledges districts and campuses for outstanding achievement based on the outcomes of several performance indicators. Distinction designations are awarded for achievement in several areas and are based on performance relative to a group of campuses of similar type, size, grade span, and student demographics.

It is in this area where the two schools differ. Sugar Grove Academy’s only distinction designation is in Comparative Closing the Gaps. Pershing Middle School's five out of seven distinctions are in Reading/English Language Arts (ELA), Social Studies, post-secondary, with 25% student progress and 25% closing performance gaps.

Based on Racial/Ethnic Groups, the dominant group in Sugar Grove Academy is Hispanics who make up nearly 81.69% of student population, followed by African Americans (11.46%), Asians (4.61%), Whites or Caucasians (1.71%), Two or More Races (0.26%) and Native Americans (0.13%).

The student population at Pershing Middle School is also predominantly by Hispanics at 40.14%, followed by African Americans (32.91%), Whites or Caucasians (18.51%), Asians (6.15%) and Two or More Races (2.23%). There is no Native Americans student in the school.

Based on household incomes, Sugar Grove Academy’s economically disadvantaged students is significantly higher at 98.95% compared to 56.49% at Pershing Middle School.

In terms of Limited English Proficiency (LEP), a term used in the United States that refers to a person who is not fluent in the English Language, mainly because it is not their native language, Sugar Grove Academy has a significantly higher number of English Language Learners comprising 72.86% of its student population compared to 16.15% at Pershing Middle School.

In addition, Sugar Grove Academy has 71.67% bilingual students, 4.22% are in the gifted and talented program, while 10.80% are in the special education program. This stacks up against Pershing Middle School with 14.53% bilingual students, 28.24% gifted and talented students and 10.14% students in the special education program.

Sugar Grove Academy's 43 teachers have been working at the campus for an average of 4.8 years with individual teaching experience averaging 9.3 years. Teachers at Pershing Middle School, numbering 87 teachers, have been serving the school for an average of 7.9 years with individual teaching experience averaging 11.3 years.

Of its teaching staff, Sugar Grove Academy has one teacher only serving the school for over 30 years, has four teachers serving the school for 20-30 years, 11 teachers have worked for 11-20 years, ten teachers have worked for 6-10 years, while 14 teachers have been serving the school for over 1-5 years, including four beginning teachers. Pershing Middle School has two teachers serving the school for over 30 years, has 15 teachers serving the school for 20-30 years, 20 teachers have worked for 11-20 years, 20 teachers have worked for 6-10 years, while 30 teachers have been serving the school for over 1-5 years, including one beginning teacher only.

In both schools, female teachers outnumber the male teachers. At Sugar Grove Academy there are 30 female teachers and 13 male teachers. Of its teaching staff, four special education teachers are being assisted by three teachers aides or paraprofessionals. In addition to its teaching staff, the school has one staff members in the school administration department and eight more working as school support staff.

At Pershing Middle School there are 59 female teachers and 28 male teachers. Of its teaching staff, three special education teachers are being assisted by five teachers aides or paraprofessionals. In addition to its teaching staff, the school has five staff members in the school administration department and nine more working as school support staff.