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» AMARILLO ISD
For Some Students Stalled by STAAR, a Safety Net Awaits
Legislation passed in 2015 paved the way for a pilot program that would provide an
alternate route to graduation for students who struggle to pass the end-of-course
exams for the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR, test. Texas
Senator Kel Seliger, of Amarillo, authored the original bill and has fi led new papers for
the 2017 legislative session, asking lawmakers to make the program permanent.
For certain students, an individual graduation committee (IGC) can turn what feels
like failure into success.
Omar’s Story
Ahmed Omar studies from sun up to sun down most days. So much so,
his mother often calls to ask if he remembered to eat. “I spend my day and
night focusing,” says Omar, known to friends by just his last name. “I leave
my house at 7 a.m. and sometimes I come back at 11 p.m. or midnight
from studying. My mom calls to see if I’ve eaten, but I’m just hungry for
education and hungry for success.”
Omar believes he is the youngest student in some of his pre-nursing
courses at Amarillo College. But as the oldest of his siblings, Omar feels a
great deal of pressure to set the bar high. “You always want to have a better
and brighter future for your kids,” he says. “I have a burden on my shoulders
not only to be a great brother, but to show I can take care of my family and
have a good quality of life.”
Omar will graduate this spring and move forward to a nursing degree
program that requires its students to earn an “A” in biology and nothing less
than a high B in anatomy and physiology I and II. He is a shining example
of a dedicated student. However, that doesn’t mean being a student, much
less being a good student, is easy for Omar.
“What’s the point of going to school? I had to ask myself,” says Omar.
He knows what it’s like to give as much effort as one student can possibly
muster and still fall short.
Omar, who came to America as a seventh grader from the Somalian city
of Mombasa, was challenged to adjust to the language and the rigor of his classes at Palo Duro High School.
Omar spent each of the summers of his high school years in summer school, working to catch up. “Nobody likes
summer school, but I think those extra steps are more that motivates you to learn,” he says.
When it was time to take the STAAR end-of-course exams, Omar retook each of those as many times as the
law allows. “Senior year was tough. I took the English end-of-course exam in December and failed it. The last
time I could take it again was in April, so I took it then and I failed again,” says Omar. “I said ‘Okay, I give up.
There’s no point in me going to school.’”
Omar buried his head in his hands, face down at his desk.
“My dreams were shattered,” says Omar. “But then my English teacher came running in. She had been
crying… for me. She said, ‘Omar, you have a high chance of graduating in May,’ and I said, ‘But I failed the test.’”
That’s when Omar learned about a backup plan included in Texas law to help students who’ve exhausted all
STAAR testing opportunities receive their high school diploma, despite their test scores.
“I’m just hungry for education
and hungry for success.”
Gradu-
Waiting