By Lindsay Tice,Staff Writer

Four local high schools have failed to meet state education standards for the past three years. By law, they don’t have to do anything about it.

But they are.

“It’s up to us to improve, and we should be improving,” said Patrick Hartnett, principal of Leavitt Area High School in Turner, one of the four.

Teacher training. New math and reading classes. Remedial programs. And they’re doing it all on their own.

Under the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act, states have to name schools that fail to meet reading and math standards. Last week, Maine publicized a list of 148 poor performers. Those that receive Title I funds – federal money earmarked for poor and underserved kids – get state help to improve and are forced to deal with a host of federal sanctions, such as a mandate to provide free tutoring.

Schools that don’t get Title I money still land on the failing schools list, but, by law, don’t get state help and don’t face sanctions. Of the 14 high schools that failed to meet standards for three years, none are Title I schools. So none will get help from the state. None will be told to improve or else.

Lewiston High School, Edward Little High School in Auburn, Mountain Valley High School in Rumford and Leavitt Area High School in Turner are among those 14. They say they’ll work on their test scores even without state help, even if the federal government says they don’t have to.

“What are we doing? Anything we can think of,” said Steve Clark, assessment director for Auburn, which has worked for years to raise its test scores.

Some of the four are using their own money to pay for remedial reading programs or to train teachers in new techniques. Others are working to identify the kids who aren’t up to grade level and to pinpoint the math and reading topics causing students the most trouble.

At Leavitt alone, officials have a 20-part plan to increase test scores. In their plan: create teacher office hours so students can be sure to get help after school, revise curriculum and look at changing the school day so more time is dedicated to math and reading.

Poor-performing Title I schools typically get help from state consultants or teacher coaches. That would have been nice, Hartnett said, but not essential.

“Not having the money shouldn’t deter us from improving,” Hartnett said.

Still, officials at the Maine Department of Education say the state should be allowed to help those high schools.

“We feel a very strong obligation there,” said Deputy Education Commissioner Patrick Phillips.

Maine is talking with the federal government about using statewide Title I money to help those schools. Because such support is not allowed under No Child Left Behind, Maine needs federal permission.

Maine high schools typically don’t receive their own Title I money because too few teenagers apply for free and reduced lunch, the government’s benchmark for poverty, and because districts typically use up their limited federal aid in early intervention elementary and middle school programs, Phillips said.

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