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BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- Despite losing a superintendent this year, the Birmingham City School system saw crucial gains in its graduation rate. That rate improved from 66 percent to 78 percent over the past year.

Superintendent Craig Witherspoon, whose tenure as the system's chief ends on Dec. 31, 2014, made graduation rates 'a priority for the system.' 'It speaks to the core business -- teaching and learning, and improving student outcomes,' he said in an e-mail last week. 'As a system, we knew the mid-70s was attainable.' The gains have been most dramatic at Huffman High School, on Birmingham's east side. There, Principal John C. Lyons has overseen a 50-percentage point jump in graduation rate since the 2009-2010 school year.

In that year, only 205 of the 518 students in the graduating cohort graduated. That Telecharger Johnny Depp Sims 2 more. 's 40 percent. 'When the superintendent brought me in, he charged me with one big responsibility, and that was raising the graduation rates,' Lyons says. 'He told me that he wanted me to find a way to change the atmosphere, the culture around the school and raise the graduation rate.'

Four years later, Huffman reported a 90 percent graduation rate, second in the district only to Ramsay High, a magnet school that has boasted a 100 percent graduation for the last three years. 'We're very proud of that,' Lyons says. 'Now, that wasn't an easy process.'

The effort involved re-marketing and re-branding, combined with outreach to the stakeholders in the Birmingham system. It required 'buy-in from all stakeholders -- the community, the business, your business partners, as well as the parents -- and everybody on one common goal: That's helping graduate students.' The faculty and staff put in the hard work of educating students. And the new school, that definitely helped. Facilities and programs One of the tasks Lyons was brought in to handle was the transition from the old Huffman site to the new building, a gorgeous $55 million campus on Springville Road.

'I must say, being in a new building changed attitudes,' Lyons says. 'People that say that environment, a new environment or a new building doesn't play a role in how students learn is inaccurate. Fun Lovin Criminals Discography Rar. It plays a tremendous role. You see things around you that look good, that, overall you don't have to worry about the heating and the air and these things-- students just learn differently.' Witherspoon acknowledged Huffman is a 'great facility, one of the best in the area,' but says there was more to Huffman's success than just the brand new school. 'School improvement requires strong leadership and a staff willing to work together for the benefit of the students,' Witherspoon said.

'This includes providing supports and removing the barriers for success.' With the new facilities came new opportunities in academics and athletics.

Lyons added bowling, swimming, tennis and swimming programs, sports that perhaps aren't considered typical of urban schools. 'Why not Huffman?' 'Why not offer another opportunity to earn a scholarship to get in college, another door? That's an avenue.' 'We've tried to offer here at Huffman, we offer the traditional track because that's what's expected,' Lyons says. 'Go to school, do four years, you pass your core subject areas, you graduate.

We've tried to offer an alternative track, as well. You offer multiple career paths.' 'Everybody won't take the traditional path,' he says. He didn't, either. 'I went to P.D. Jackson-Olin High School, I competed everywhere in carpentry, and if you were to ask somebody 20 years ago, they would have told you I was going to be a carpenter,' Lyons said. But Lyons didn't become a carpenter.