GREENE – Greene High School is one of the top performing secondary schools in New York State, according to a recent study conducted by the University of Albany.

Greene was one of ten high-performing high schools across the state selected to participate in the study, which is part of an ongoing research initiative known as Just for the Kids - New York. The purpose of the project is to help other schools learn from the best practices of higher performers.

“It’s quite an honor,” said Gary Smith, superintendent of Greene Central Schools. “We’re very pleased to have the recognition.”

According to the research methodology, the study consisted of 15 New York high schools. Ten of those schools were selected because they “achieve consistently higher performance on New York State Assessments in English, mathematics, science and social studies compared to schools with similar demographics.” The remaining five schools were average performers, the identity of which was kept confidential.

Participation meant rounds of interviews at the school and district level, which were conducted by University of Albany researchers in early 2008.

According to the study findings, the performance of Greene High School and the other schools studied can be traced to five factors: Rigor, innovation, transparency, evidence-based decision making and strategic action.