1-Color
May 16, 2014
75 cents Arapahoe County, Colorado | Volume 94, Issue 13 A publication of
englewoodherald.net
Reading scores up in district Englewood schools see 10-point jump among third-graders By Tom Munds
tmunds @coloradocommunitymedia.com
Artist Kyle Banister holds his artwork of Satchel Paige playing the piano. Banister created it and other works of members of the Negro Baseball League that will be used as part of a television feature about the league’s museum in Kansas City. Photo by Tom Munds
Works pay tribute to baseball TV station includes artist’s paintings in Negro League feature By Tom Munds
tmunds@coloradocommunitymedia.com Former Englewood resident and artist Kyle Banister responded to a request and created a number of paintings that were filmed for a Root Sports Television feature on the Negro Baseball League scheduled to
air May 18 as part of the program “Rockies Weekly” that follows the Rockies game. “I got a call asking me to do some art works of athletes who played in the Negro Baseball League that would be included in the TV feature,” Banister said. “The feature is being done because the Colorado Rockies are in Kansas City May 13 and 14 and plans are for some of the players to visit the Negro Baseball Museum located there.” Banister did a total of seven art works of Negro Baseball League players Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson and Willie Mays. He said Paige played for the Kansas City
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Monarchs, Mays played for the Birmingham Black Barons and Gibson played for Homestead Grays. Paige and Mays both later played for teams in Major League Baseball. Gibson, said to be one of the greatest catchers and power hitters ever, never got to play in the then all-white majors. “I used pictures on Google as models but then took artistic license to create my artworks,” he said. “For example, probably the most famous picture of Satchel Paige was on Life Magazine of him in a Cleveland Indians uniform. My interpretation of that picture is a three-dimensional piece with Paige made out of aluminum, wearing a Monarchs uniform with his feet extended out of the frame. He is leaning against the brick wall made of sign foam.” He said baseball is one of the favorite artwork subjects. His seven works of Negro Baseball League players are hanging on the walls of Cuttin’ it Loose Salon located at the northwest corner of South Inca Street and Englewood Parkway. He said the works will be at the salon for about a month or more.
Every public elementary school in Englewood recorded an increase this year in the percentage of third-graders scoring in the proficient or advance range on the Transitional Colorado Assessment Program reading tests. “We are excited and proud of the performance of our third-graders on the reading tests,” said Brian Ewert, school superintendent. “But we also try to keep everything in perspective. This is a different group of third-graders from the third-graders who took the test last year, so it’s comparing apples to oranges. Also, this is the first state assessment test results for these students, so we don’t have a test history measuring the academic growth of these students. But we do want to take the opportunity to celebrate the achievements of these students.” School or district TCAP results are reported as the percentage of students who scored unsatisfactory, partially proficient, proficient and advanced. This year, the average number of third-graders statewide scoring proficient or advanced declined slightly from 73 percent in 2013 to 72 percent this year. It was a different story in Englewood elementary schools. According to the unofficial results provided by the state, the percentage of students scoring proficient and advanced went up in every school, and the district percentage climbed from 54 percent in 2013 to 64 percent this year. The highest percentage gain was at Cherrelyn Elementary School. Last year, 31 percent of the third-graders scored proficient or advanced, while 53 percent of this year’s third-graders achieved those scores. The difference in the 2013 and 2014 percentages of students achieving proficient and advance scores at the other schools were: Bishop: 56 percent to 57 percent Clayton: 58 percent to 63 percent Charles Hay: 68 percent to 73 percent “The results of the third-grade TCAP scores are exciting, and I don’t believe you can attribute the improvements to any one factor,” Ewert said. “In the four years we have been in the district, we have strived to help students improve and grow academically.” He did note the district issued an iPad to each student and rolled out a reading program called myOn Reader. The iPads also provide students access to more than 4,000 books. Since the program began in July 2013, Englewood students have read a total of almost 59,000 books and they have spent more than 14,000 hours reading. The superintendent said he feels the district is making progress in student growth and achievement. He said that in the last three years, Englewood has gone from being classified by the state as a Turnaround District that needed to improve to a district classified as Accredited with Improvement. He said improvement continues to be the goal, and the reading scores hopefully indicate Englewood schools are moving in the right direction.