The goals are set each year to help focus work and set priorities. They cover areas like improving graduation rates and passing rates on state tests for all students.
But Plano school officials also want to focus on the glaring gap between minority students and their peers.
“Are we doing enough in the district to meet their needs?” said Jim Wussow, assistant superintendent for academic services.
A significantly lower percentage of black and Hispanic students do well on college-entrance tests than others. Only 22 percent of African-American students and 34 percent of Hispanics scored at college-ready levels on either the SAT or ACT tests in 2012. Meanwhile, 64 percent of white students did.
And few Hispanic students took either college-entrance test — only 56 percent of Latino students compared to 85 percent of white students and 76 percent of black students. Participation in Advance Placement or IB courses is also significantly lower for the minority students.
