Charter-school network Success Academy had all of its eighth-graders take the state Algebra 1 Regents exam last year — and notched a 99 percent pass rate, the network said Monday.
All told, 426 Success Academy eighth-graders sat for the test — considered critical for advanced math coursework — and nearly every one scored at a passing level, the operator said.
Last year marked the first time Success Academy eighth-graders ever took the exam.
“I’m proud of our eighth-graders,” said Eva Moskowitz, the charter network’s founder and CEO. “They demonstrate that low-income children of color can achieve at the highest level.”
In addition, 93 percent of Success Academy eighth-graders had scores considered “college ready,” while 56 percent notched the highest score level of 5, according to the charter-school network. Success Academy test-takers across all grades had a 99 percent passage rate on the test, officials said.
City public-school kids, meanwhile, passed the Algebra 1 test at a 62 percent rate — a dip of 6 percent from the prior year, according to the city Department of Education. Of those, only 20 percent had college-ready scores of 4 or 5.
“At the same time, it’s tragic that so few of their peers across the city are learning what is essential for college success,” Moskowitz said of those figures in a statement.
As part of Mayor de Blasio’s Algebra for All initiative, the DOE has sought to boost the number of eighth-graders taking the test.
A total 34 percent of public-school eighth-graders — up from 23 percent in 2016 — sat for the exam last year, with 82 percent passing, according to the DOE. That makes 22,802 public-school eighth-graders who took the test last year, compared to 19,701 the prior year.
But the overall number of traditional public-school kids among all grades who took the Algebra 1 test slipped during that period, going from 113,372 in 2017 to 110,724 this year, according to DOE data.
“More 8th graders are taking and passing the Algebra Regents because of the Algebra for All initiative, and we are building on this foundation through our investments in AP for All, College Access for All, and strengthened teacher training,” said DOE spokeswoman Danielle Filson.