By Chelsea Vance | The Selma Times-Journal

Three local schools are among 76 in Alabama labeled “failing” by the Alabama State Department of Education.

Sophia P. Kingston Elementary School and R.B. Hudson Middle School from Selma City Schools and Bruce K. Craig Elementary School from Dallas County Schools were included on the list.

To be on the list, schools scored in the lowest 6 percent of reading and math portions of the 2014-2015 ACT Aspire Test.

Four schools, Southside High School, Keith Middle-High School, Tipton Durant Middle School and Brantley Elementary School, were on the list last year but are not in 2016.

Dallas County Schools Superintendent Don Willingham said he’s happy to see improvement from one year to the next.

“I’m proud of the four schools that are no longer considered failing schools. They had been under that label for several years,” Willingham said. “So much work has been put in for them to get out of that label, we’re real proud of the administrators and teachers at Southside, Keith, Brantley and Tipton.”

He said the system will work hard to make improvements at Bruck K. Craig.

When test results were received over the summer, Willingham said he knew there would be work to do.

“We have addressed those and changed some things that we do at Bruce K. Craig. We have a new principal in place and several new teacher responsibilities. So, I think we’ve addressed the issues,” Willingham said.

He said he’s confident test results from 2016 will improve.

Selma City Schools Superintendent Angela Mangum said students worked hard and came close to the proficiency expectations.

Mangum has a remedy to get R.B. Hudson and Kingston off the list.

“We have worked on the expectations that we have for students as well as our work,” Mangum said. “Every teacher in the Selma City School System has received training on strategic teaching.”

She said it’s important to have students actively engaged in learning where reading, writing, thinking and listening is integrated into every lesson.

“This will help kids understand the content that they’re supposed to learn,” Mangum said.