GUILFORD COUNTY, N.C. — Soaring graduation rates, outstanding End of Grade results and community involvement that surpasses expectations; it's all a part of the reason Ragsdale High School in Jamestown received the 2019 Hubert B. Humphrey Jr., School Improvement Award.
Principal Jim Gibson accepted the award Wednesday at the Greensboro Chamber's State of Our Community Luncheon.
WFMY News 2's Tracey McCain sat down with Gibson to see what's working starting with test scores that took huge leaps forward over the past few years.
"We saw increases across the board and in Biology for the third year in a row," said Gibson, who is going into his sixth year as Ragsdale's principal. But that's just the beginning.
End of Course (EOC) proficiency in Math I, English II, and Biology improved four percentage points between 2017 and 2018, from 53.2 percent proficient to 57.2 percent proficient. Guilford County Schools says the increase is the second-highest of the district's 15 traditional high schools.
During that same time period, more students who were considered CTE (Career and Technical Education) concentrators increased 14 percent, and the number of students who took the SAT increased by 19 percent with students being selected at some of the top universities in the region.
"We had 14 students who went to UNC Chapel Hill, which is really a strong number of students for a very competitive school," said Gibson. "And we've had our students go to Clemson, South Carolina, NC A&T, all over the place and so we're really proud of the things that they have accomplished."
Gibson says student's close relationships with student counselors helped bring the school's scholarship totals to a record $6 million for the graduating class.
Ragsdale is scoring in all aspects of academics and athletics and that excellence is taking them all around the world.
"In the past few years we've had over 60 students travel abroad earning scholarships, I think it's over $200,000 in scholarships for study abroad travel," said Gibson.
Ragsdale has one of the only programs like it in Guilford County taking students to more than 20 countries for months-long experiences across the globe. Students have recently traveled to Spain, Ireland, Africa, Germany, France, China, and Japan.
Principal Gibson came up with the global leadership idea five years ago. Each year, students bring their experience back into the classroom at home.
"You can go to any high school and get your sound basic education but what are some things you can do that would be above and beyond that, that would be unique? This is one of them!"
Principal Gibson is set on building young leaders.
"It kind of brings full circle what we've tried to do with global leadership. We have kids traveling the world, we have teachers learning how to teach classes with a global perspective and now we're getting to the leadership aspect of that with the Center for Creative Leadership."
He says the philosophy is driving what's next at Ragsdale and has become the key to the school's success.
"I think one of the biggest things is the students themselves. You have to have the people who want to put forth the effort to accept the challenges and I think we certainly have those students here."
Ragsdale will receive a $12,000 dollar award which will help the school continue their global leadership programs.
The Hubert B. Humphrey Award recognizes schools for improving student achievement through sound educational practices, community outreach, and collaborative practices.
Previous winners include Southwest High School in High Point and Eastern Guilford High School in Gibsonville.
Congratulations Tigers!