Ajo Unified School District #15

AJO Red RAIDERS TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS 

A Message from Our Superintendent

Parents and Guardians,

The Arizona Department of Education recently released the 2021–2022 A–F school letter grades for all public schools statewide. These reports provide information about student achievement, college and career readiness, student growth, and other key areas of interest to families and the general public. Below are the letter grades for each school:

• Ajo Elementary School: C
• Ajo High School: D

The AUSD community has been diligently working to recover from the impacts of the pandemic and to ensure students have the resources and opportunities they need to thrive. While we are seeing many positive trends in the data, it is clear we have work to do to ensure our students achieve their full potential. With that said, we also want to recognize that there are several areas where students performed well:

• K–8 received 38.2 points out of 50 for student growth points.
• K–8 received all 10 possible points for acceleration/readiness.
• Grades 9–12 has a 10 out of 10 for the graduation rate.
• High school graduation rate has consistently remained above 80% for the past five years.
• Many of our students are earning college credit while they are in high school.
• Two of our students passed the computer science Advanced Placement exam last year.
• Ajo High School received recognition for the significant increase in FAFSA completion last year.
• K–8 scored well on the growth component in general, and 70% of the sixth grade students had high growth in math last year.

Like all schools in Arizona and across the country, the AUSD continues to recover from the impacts of COVID-19. While the letter grades are not where we want them to be, student achievement is on a growth trajectory coming out of the pandemic.

We are incredibly proud of our hardworking students, staff, and teachers who have put forth their best efforts under extremely difficult conditions. Our focus moving forward is on accelerated learning across both schools. AUSD Red Raider teachers and staff are focused on ensuring students have the resources and support they need to truly thrive.

We will continue to implement and use data-driven best practices as a guide to improve student achievement. Below are key strategies we will focus on as we go forward:

• Implementation of the Beyond Textbooks curriculum framework.
• Our teachers strive to make sure that students receive adequate instructional and practice time on all essential standards before the test day, using the Beyond Textbooks pacing calendar.
• We provide individualized instruction through intervention programs.
• We provide extended instructional time through after school tutoring and/or intersessions.

Thank you for your support as we meet the needs of our students during this critical time. Please feel free to contact us with any questions.