Students At LeBron James' School Have Improved Their Test Scores

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Students At LeBron’s School Are Improving Their Test Scores

In the very short time since LeBron James opened his I Promise School in his home state of Ohio, the students there have already exceeded expectations.

According to a new report from the New York Times, children at the school have seen both their math and their reading scores increase since it opened in July of 2018. After participating in the Measures of Academic Progress assessment, 216 of 240 students were found to have met or exceeded their expected growth at the mid-year mark.

When they first came into the school, reading comprehension scores for third and fourth grade students were consistently in the lowest percentile. Today, third graders have advanced all the way to the 9th percentile, while fourth graders rose to the 16th. In math, third graders were in the first percentile and have since jumped to 18th. Fourth graders went to the 30th percentile after being in the second.

“These kids are doing an unbelievable job, better than we all expected,” James told the Times of the students and their progress. “When we first started, people knew I was opening a school for kids. Now people are going to really understand the lack of education they had before they came to our school. People are going to finally understand what goes on behind our doors.”

While the students are still behind when compared to normal grade levels, their improvement in only one short year shows that James’ promise is actually being fulfilled.

The school was built to serve at-risk children, but it also offers parents opportunities, like the ability to finish high school, even promising free tuition to the University of Akron upon graduation. Beyond those already impressive promises, students also receive free breakfast, lunch and snacks, as well as a free bike, according to Time.

The school’s first year is set to wrap up in May and STEM-based camps will be offered throughout the summer. The school is expected to serve all grades from first to eighth within the next four years.

I Promise’s inaugural students are now preparing to take the state’s standardized tests with results expected in the summer.