GREENE – Greene High School is one of the top performing secondary schools in New York State, according to a recent study conducted by the University of Albany.

Greene was one of ten high-performing high schools across the state selected to participate in the study, which is part of an ongoing research initiative known as Just for the Kids - New York. The purpose of the project is to help other schools learn from the best practices of higher performers.

“It’s quite an honor,” said Gary Smith, superintendent of Greene Central Schools. “We’re very pleased to have the recognition.”

According to the research methodology, the study consisted of 15 New York high schools. Ten of those schools were selected because they “achieve consistently higher performance on New York State Assessments in English, mathematics, science and social studies compared to schools with similar demographics.” The remaining five schools were average performers, the identity of which was kept confidential.

Participation meant rounds of interviews at the school and district level, which were conducted by University of Albany researchers in early 2008.

According to the study findings, the performance of Greene High School and the other schools studied can be traced to five factors: Rigor, innovation, transparency, evidence-based decision making and strategic action.

“In all of these aspects, the most successful schools strike their own unique balance between focus and freedom,” concluded the research team. “They focus on what will make the most impact on student performance defined within their schools, districts and by the state, but also exploit their freedom to challenge, innovate, share and use a variety of sources of evidence to inform their practice.”

The high school isn’t the only one of the district’s schools to be singled out by the Just for the Kids research team. According to Smith, the Greene Middle School has also been selected for a similar study being conducted of schools with consistently high levels of achievement on the state’s science assessment.

“It’s quite an accomplishment,” said Smith. “I have to give credit to my administrative team, the teachers, staff and our board of education for providing the support and resources the students need to be successful.”

He anticipates the results of the middle school study to be published some time in 2010.

The Just for the Kids program is a collaborative effort between the University of Albany’s School of Education, The Business Council of New York State, The State of New York and the National Center for Educational Achievement.

The study’s results, including a detailed case study of the Greene High School, are available on the University of Albany website, www.albany.edu/aire/kids.