MIDDLESBORO — In spite of the superstition that says 13 is an odd and rather unlucky number; 13 is looking lucky in Middlesboro, Kentucky!

Middlesboro Independent Elementary Schools placed 13th, among all other school districts, on the state’s annual Commonwealth Accountability Testing (CATS) results.

CATS is designed to improve teaching and student learning in Kentucky. CATS includes the Kentucky Core Content Test, writing portfolios and prompts, alternate assessment for students with severe to profound disabilities, the ACT, and other non-academic components. CATS is graded on four scoring levels: novice, apprentice, proficient and distinguished.

As a part of Kentucky’s educational reforms, schools are held accountable for the progress of their students. Frequent, meaningful testing such as CATS, is required to assess the extent of student progress towards proficiency. Mandatory testing is required throughout public schools in the state, so that instructors have the necessary data for making effective decisions concerning school policies, programs, and curriculum.

Officials in the state of Kentucky have divided the state into 174 school districts, encompassing 1,243 individual public school systems. An estimated 668,337 students were enrolled in these districts during the 2007-2008 fiscal school year, according to the Kentucky Department of Education.

Among the listed number of school districts and students, Middlesboro elemenary schools hit their mark at 13, reflecting high-performance results. Their scores reflected a year of hard work and dedication by staff and faculty members school wide.

“These scores speak for themselves, and for us as a professional group,” said Superintendent Darryl Wilder during the Sept. Board of Education meeting.

Middlesboro was designated as a “met goals” school for their district’s accountability cycle. The system met and exceeded it’s testing goal point.

“We’re very proud,” said Middlesboro Primary School Principal Janis Barton. “But we’re never satisfied. We will continue to work hard, always trying to exceed the previous year’s results,” she said.

For more information on CATS testing, or to view results, visit http://education.ky.gov/KDE/.

Sarah Miracle is a staff writer for the Daily News. She can be reached via e-mail at smiracle@middlesborodailynews.com.

Photo: The results are in! Middlesboro Elementary Schools’ Commonwealth Accountability Testing (CATS) outcome landed them 13th in the state, with some highly proficient scores. Among all the school districts in the state, Middlesboro ranked high, “lucky number 13”. Pictured are the educators of Middlesboro Primary School, parading their lucky #13 shirts.

(SARAH MIRACLE/ Middlesboro Daily News)