Schools in Ballard are doing a good job educating our children, but unless they are scoring 100 percent across the board there's always room for improvement, Seattle Schools superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson told a Ballard Rotary Club meeting.

Goodloe-Johnson said she does not discuss specific details about individual schools, but that the current district-wide academic statistics are not acceptable. She wants Seattle students to do better.

A quality education for every child is something she said she firmly believes in and some new goals are set to improve test scores among Seattle students.

"I want all kids to be excited about education," she said.

On June 4, the Seattle School Board approved a five-year plan to help the district's 45,000 students meet new standards and close an achievement gap.

For instance, in 2006/2007, 72 percent of third grade students met or exceeded reading standards. The new goal is 88 percent. Fifty-three percent of seventh graders met or exceeded math standards and the district would like that figure at 80 percent.

Middle and high school students are below state average in math and science WASL tests. High school graduation rates were 62 percent in 2006/2007. The new goal is 75 percent.

The district's strategies to meet the new standards include: strengthening the teaching of math and science; developing assessment tools to track student progress; and a new system to recognize high performing schools; and helping schools that are struggling.

System wide, the best teachers and principals would be retained and hired. All school employees would be held to high expectations with the support they need, along with effective performance evaluations.

Since starting her job last July, Goodloe-Johnson has visited all of the district's 93 schools and has talked to the students.

"Kids don't like sitting at school and not being challenged," she said.

Goodloe-Johnson said the district has an amazing and dedicated work force.

Several Ballard educators who are members of the Ballard Rotary were in attendance during Goodloe-Johnson's speech.

They included Ballard High principal Phil Brockman and Whittier Elementary principal Cothron McMillan. Three teachers from Whittier also attended, along with some Rotary Club members who are parents of children in the Seattle schools.

"Students need to compete in a global economy. When they graduate there should be open doors to them," said Goodloe-Johnson.

"The state needs to fund more than adequate education," said Goodloe-Johnson who spends a great deal of time in Olympia lobbying legislators for education funding.

She finds strong support from the citizens of Seattle.

"It's increasingly a positive statement about our children," said Goodloe-Johnson.

Prior to accepting the Seattle School district leadership position, Goodloe-Johnson was superintendent of the 43,000-student Charleston County School District in South Carolina.

The Ballard Rotary donated 300 pounds of food to Northwest Harvest in honor of the Seattle Schools. The Rotary club provides $10,000 worth of scholarships to Ballard High School students each year and donates supplies to other schools in the area.

Dean Wong may be reached at 783.1244 or deanw@robinsonnews.com