LEXINGTON Ky. — A report released Friday by a nonprofit education group says while Kentucky students are making improvements in achievement, the state remains behind in key areas, such as preschool enrollment and per-pupil funding.
The Top 20 by 2020 report by the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, an education advocacy group based in Lexington, looked at how the state stacks up against 20 key nationwide measures.
“This report offers reason for a real sense of pride and also a real sense of urgency,” Stu Silberman, executive director of the Prichard Committee, said in a news release.
The report found that in five categories, Kentucky is already in the top 20, including science and reading scores for fourth- and eighth-graders and the number of community college students who complete an associate degree in three years.
In 10 categories, Kentucky is on target to reach the top 20 by 2020. Those include average teacher salary and adults with a high school diploma or equivalent.
Areas in which the state is moving too slowly include the percentage of high school students earning AP college credit, eighth-grade math scores and percentage of full-time college students completing a bachelor’s degree in six years, the report said.
The next update will be published in 2014.
