Parents, students and residents alike can expect to see continued improvements in the Savannah-Chatham school district in the upcoming school year, Superintendent Ann Levett said to a packed room of educators Friday.

During her first State of Our Schools Address, Levett touted growth in employment and graduation rates in 2016 and said district progress is slated to continue when school kicks off Aug 3.

Levett said an unprecedented 2,000 graduates received diplomas in May and said the districts graduation rates continue to beat the state average. The Savannah-Chatham school districts graduation rate is about 83.2 percent compared to Georgias rate of 79.2 percent.

This is indeed our season of impact, she said. And we will work to provide another year of excellence.

The school district serves more than 38,000 students throughout 55 schools and employs 5,600 people, Levett said, making it the 10th largest school district in the state.

Officials added to those employment numbers when the district decided to bring its transportation in-house. The change was designed to streamline student experience while saving a few dollars, Levett said. It was also the first time the district handled its own bus transportation and routing since its transportation department was privatized in 1998.

From Tybee to Bloomingdale, we have a large geographic footprint and we cover a lot of miles, she said. By bringing transportation inside, we brought those dollars back and made an investment in our community.

Other noted achievements included the STEM certification of Heard Elementary and new facilities for Haven, May Howard and Juliette Low schools.

In the coming months, residents can expect to see aggressive efforts to get the community more involved in the education process, Levett said.

This year the district is launching literacy and math programs to make resources more readily available to students including a book drive with a million-book goal.

The school board chose Levett from among four superintendent finalists on May 4. The board officially approved her hiring on May 22 in a contentious 5-4 vote. Board members Julie Wade, Michael Johnson and Shawn Kachmar as well as School Board President Jolene Byrne insisted that their criticisms of Levett during that meeting werent personal, and they pledged to follow board policy and support Levett. The board approved Levetts contract June 27. She received a $242,500 salary. Her two-year deal includes a stipend, home workstation and business expenses.

Levett begins the school year as an investigation looms into the school board by the districts accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).

Mariama Jenkins, spokeswoman for AdvancEd which oversees the SACS accreditation process said in a previous story that SACS received complaints of school board interference and will investigate.

We received complaints in response to allegations that Savannah-Chatham County Public School System is in violation of AdvancED Accreditation Standards for Quality School Systems. Based on the merits of those complaints we will be conducting an on-site review this fall, Jenkins said.

SACS investigators can put districts on probation and revoke accreditation if they find that school boards are disrupting the educational effectiveness of a district. The investigation stems from now retired Superintendent Thomas Lockamys complaints that interference and a lack of support from Byrne hastened his decision to retire and he has provided SACS with a candid account of her alleged interference.

Georgia Milestone scores

Levett said Friday that she recognized that while progress was made there is still much work to be done.

The countywide educator rally comes on the heels of the state release of Georgia Milestones Assessment System scores. The 2017 release shows that the state average is improving, but Savannah-Chatham schools still have a bit of catching up to do.

The percentage of proficient and developing high school learners dropped in five of GMAS test subjects: algebra, biology U.S. history, geometry and economics. There were significant increases in four GMAS test high school subjects: 9th grade literature, American literature, analytical geometry and physical science. Proficiency percentages among elementary and middle school students decreased among grades 5-8. Savannah-Chatham third- and fourth-graders showed increased proficiency across the board.

We may not be doing everything right, but we are doing something right to see some progress, she said. And that progress wont go unnoticed. But we will continue to work hard Our first step is to look at those areas where scores dropped and see what caused the drop and the same with improvements.

To read a complete list of GMAS scores, go to http://bit.ly/2ujFe36.

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New Superintendent Levett pledges progress for Savannah-Chatham school district - Savannah Morning News