9/15/17 – 5:17 A.M.

Hancock County school districts all made strides in teaching their youngest students how to read. That was one of the takeaways from the latest round of school report cards from the state. Each district in the county improved at least one letter grade according to state evaluations.

Van Buren earned an A in the K-3 literacy category. Liberty-Benton and Riverdale scored B’s. Arcadia, Arlington, Cory-Rawson, Findlay, and McComb all earned C’s. The grade card gave Vanlue a D in K-3 literacy.

In the achievement category, most schools stayed steady with their 2016 grades. Van Buren improved, scoring a B over last year’s C. Arcadia, Arlington, and Liberty-Benton scored B’s in achievement. Cory-Rawson, Findlay, McComb, Riverdale, and Vanlue all scored D grades in the achievement metric.

Progress from one year to another was a mixed bag for Hancock County schools. Arlington moved from a B to an A this year. Findlay, McComb, Van Buren, and Vanlue all stayed steady with D’s. Arcadia, Cory-Rawson, and Liberty-Benton slid back a letter grade to a D, while Riverdale fell from a D to an F.

Several superintendents tell the Courier the grade cards don’t tell the whole story. For instance, Findlay Superintendent says ACT scores for the district continue to rise.