DeSoto Parish School System

The 2018-19 school year is in full swing and we are glad to have your student back in the classroom. While visiting each school, it is amazing to see the effort by administration, faculty, staff, and students.

I sincerely hope it has been a positive and productive start to the school year.  It is hard to believe that we are quickly approaching the end of the first grading period (October 4). 

I encourage you to take part in a conference with your student’s teacher this fall. Our student/parent/teacher conferences will be held October 4-5. This dedicated time with your child’s teacher helps solidify your role as a partner in education, as you work together to discuss goals and track your child’s progress. If you cannot meet during the allotted conference time, please contact your child’s teacher to make alternative arrangements.

It is important that you communicate with us so we may better serve your student(s). This communication partnership with your student’s school is essential to ensure a positive educational experience. I would like to take this opportunity to encourage you to stay connected with your student’s teachers and school happenings. We have a tremendous amount of information on our new website. Please take a minute to find your child’s school under the “Schools” tab at the top of the homepage, which will give the school’s contact numbers in addition to other important information. You may also want to follow DeSoto Parish Schools on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube for the most current district information. You can find links to these social media platforms in the header of the homepage.

We want to be sure that every avenue of communication is open to you.  DeSoto Parish School System is honored and proud to serve the community and looks forward to improving our already strong community collaborations.  We pledge to continue our partnership with parents as we strive to provide the highest level of education for all students. Together we will soar to new heights!

Clay J. Corley

Superintendent

The Louisiana Department of Education recently released data demonstrating how students in grades 4-12 are progressing toward fully mastering key concepts and skills in English Language Arts (ELA) and math.  The DeSoto Parish School System was announced today as an “Outstanding School System” for demonstrating top growth on this progress measure.  DeSoto is now ranked in the top ten of systems with the highest percentages of top growth. 

 “Today’s release exemplifies the growth mindset established here in DeSoto Parish,” said Clay Corley, Superintendent. “I’m very proud of the instructional practices that our teachers have instituted in their classrooms that allow every student to reach their individual growth targets.”

Today’s release also named DeSoto Parish Schools as a leader in student performance growth among English Learners (EL).  DeSoto is now ranked 2^nd in the state for growth as measured with this subgroup of students.  EL students in DeSoto are growing their performance in ELA and math faster than other EL students around the state of Louisiana. 

“We take seriously the need to continually analyze individual student data in every classroom across the district,” states Kathy Noel, Director of Student Learning.  “Strategic professional development is provided to our teachers and staff members to increase their knowledge of the content and to develop lessons that are providing constant feedback to our students about their progress toward their goals.”

These data reports come at time when policy shifts are being implemented for how school performance is determined.  By 2025, the average A-rated school in Louisiana is one in which students are proficient in literacy and math skills, demonstrated by a score of Mastery or Advanced on state assessments.  To ensure students are improving at a rate that will allow them to reach this goal, the state of Louisiana has developed a measurement that assigns each student an individual goal target to meet each year. This student progress measure will now attribute to 25 percent of an elementary or middle school’s performance score and 12.5 percent of a high school’s performance score.