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Theme schools middle school CCRPI scores
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The Newton County School System has released the College and Career Readiness Performance Index score — the state’s new accountability score — for the middle-school grades at the Newton County Theme School at Ficquett, after an oversight left the school off the initial report.

The school system also updated a few schools’ CCRPI scores after the Georgia Department of Education updated its numbers.

The NCTS middle school had a CCRPI score of 89. NCSS Superintendent Gary Mathews said the middle school component at the theme school includes sixth and seventh grades. The score was inadvertently left off the original list of schools, said Board of Education chair Abigail Coggin.

As with elementary grades at the theme school, its middle-school scores were also the highest in Newton County on the CCRP index.

According to the updated report, the free/reduced lunch percentage at the theme school is 31.40 percent. Flint Hill Elementary had an initial CCRPI score of 73.3, but now sits at a 73.8; at South Salem Elementary, the initial CCRPI score was 66.4, but is now 66.9; and at Mansfield Elementary, the initial CCRPI score was 89.4, but has been updated to 89.9.

For the middle schools, Liberty Middle had an initial CCRPI score of 81.7, but is now at 82.2. The theme school’s middle school free/reduced lunch percentage is at 44.70 percent.

There were no updates to any of the high schools’ reports.

Mathews said though there were minor changes, there are no changes in the overall Rate of Improvement for elementary, middle and high schools as a whole.

"The only changes are slight and are for individual schools," he said in an email.

He added that the state updated its CCRPI results to get the most accurate scores.

Eastside High School announces Top 10 graduates for Class of 2025
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Eastside High School has announced the names of the top ten graduates of the Class of 2025. Leading the way are valedictorian, Ian White, and salutatorian, Malachi Scharf. Each of the top ten graduates have exciting prospects ahead of them as they prepare for life after high school.

Eastside High School’s 2025 Top 10 Graduates are:

• Ian White—The valedictorian, Ian plans to attend college and obtain a doctorate in chemical engineering. He selected Mr. Elijah Clark as his top teacher.

• Malachi Scharf—The salutatorian, Malachi plans to major in chemical engineering at Georgia Tech. He chose Mr. Michael Poor as his favorite teacher.

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Malachi Scharf (left) and Ian White (right) are Eastside High School’s 2025 Salutatorian and Valedictorian. - photo by Courtesy of Newton County School System

• Kaiden Blazina—Kaiden plans to attend Georgia College and State University to study biology with plans to become an anesthesiologist or a missionary. Kaiden selected Mrs. Haley Dawkins as his honored teacher.

• Abby Malcom—Abby will be attending Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in the fall to major in agribusiness. Her goal is to run a floral business. She selected Ms. Sara Beth Hammond as her top teacher.

• Shelby Moore—Shelby plans to attend Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College to pursue a degree in agricultural education. She selected Ms. Alisa Echols as her top teacher.

• Annalie Parker—Annalie will attend Georgia College & State University with plans to obtain a doctorate and pursue a career in the scientific field. She selected Dr. Catrina Pollard as her favorite teacher.

• Chandler Shurtz—Chandler plans to attend Georgia Tech to study industrial engineering. He selected Mrs. Kelly Elder as his honored teacher.

• Robby Thomas, Jr.—Robby will attend Georgia Tech to study aerospace engineering and astrophysics. His goal is to work for NASA. Robby chose Ms. Kayla Stoddard as his honored teacher.

• Anna Underwood—Anna is attending Georgia State Perimeter to study her core classes with plans to transfer to the University of Georgia. Her career goal is to become an elementary school teacher. She selected Mr. Eric Adams as her top teacher.

• Benjamin Weaver—Benjamin is attending Newberry College to play soccer and study in their pre-vet program before moving on to veterinary school. He selected Mr. Caleb Watson as his honored teacher