Data show Coshocton County Career Center thriving
COSHOCTON — Ohio’s career and technical schools are generally improving across the state, according to new data from the Ohio Department of Education.
The Coshocton County Career Center on Airport Road has improved as well, but Principal Eddie Dovenbarger acknowledged there is room for growth.
The Career-Technical Report Card is the state’s measurement device for career and technical schools, similar to the Ohio Report Card for public school districts.
It measures four- and five-year graduation rates, post-program placement (in jobs, apprenticeships, military positions, college, etc.), and technical skill achievement.
Coshocton earned A’s in four- and five-year graduation rates and in technical skill achievement. It scored a B in post-program placement.
Dovenbarger said despite Coshocton’s high marks, “I don’t try to get too wrapped up in the data.”
Career and technical schools have been graded by other means in the past, but the Career-Technical Report Card for the class of 2013 is the first of its kind.
The new numbers from the ODE show more career and tech schools’ classes of 2013 scored A’s and B’s while fewer scored C’s, D’s and F’s than the graduating classes the previous year across all grading criteria.
Mid-East graduated 96.5 percent of students in four years and 96 percent in five.
For the class of 2013, 76 percent of Ohio’s career and technical schools received A’s in four-year graduation rates while 64 percent received high marks for five-year rates.
Technical skill achievement has been an issue statewide. However, Coshocton ranked among some of the best in the state despite being one of the smallest career and technical schools in Ohio.
For the class of 2012, only 34 percent of career and technical schools in Ohio scored A’s on achievement, 27 percent B’s, 11 percent C’s, 8 percent D’s and 11 percent F’s.
Seventy-two percent of Coshocton County Career Center students achieved the technical skills coursework is designed to provide based on participation in technical assessments and scores on those assessments.
The report card only measured the class of 2013. Dovenbarger said his school will have a better idea of where it stands when more recent data come out.
However, Dovenbarger said he thinks added accountability measures with the new grading method are a good thing.
“I think career-tech is really in the limelight now,” he said.
Report cards for the class of 2014 will come out this winter, and 2015 toward the middle of next year.
bparks2@gannett.com
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