HANA, MAUI - Hana High and Elementary School plans to appeal a report that placed the campus in the lowest status possible because of its failure this year to meet raised proficiency benchmarks in reading and math, the Maui News reported today.

Principal Rick Paul told the Maui News yesterday that he's not sure that the appeal will change the East Maui school's status under the No Child Left Behind Act, but he wants to at least correct the record.

The Maui Distict has two complexes: One includes Hana, Lahaina, Lanai and Molokai.

Officials at schools in the other complex also plan to look at their students' test results more closely to determine if an appeal is warranted, according to area Superintendent Bruce Anderson. Many of the affected school administrators were on the Mainland for training last week and have not had a chance to scrutinize the results.

The deadline for filing appeals is Wednesday.

Preliminary results issued by the state Department of Education last week showed that 17 Maui County public schools, including Hana High and Elementary, did not reach adequate yearly progress benchmarks.

This year's federally mandated proficiency levels were raised from 44 percent to 58 percent in reading, and 28 percent to 46 percent in math.

Students in grades 3 through 8 and those in the 10th grade were graded based on the Hawaii State Assessment test given in April and other indicators.

In at least six years of testing, Hana students have never reached adequate yearly progress standards. That forced the state Department of Education to intervene, place the campus in "restructuring status" and require it to hire a private consultant to assist with raising student achievement.

Paul said he has found restructuring to be beneficial for his campus, and he does not begrudge the consulting firm or the state intervention measures that had to be put in place.

However, Paul said he believes his campus has reached the level where marked improvements are being made in test scores and student achievement, and he would like to step up and out of restructuring.

"We want to get this behind us. We know what we need to do. We just have to do it," he said.

According to Hana's 2008 adequate yearly progress report, the high school's graduation rate fell short by four percentage points of the required 80 percent. Paul said he's questioning the accuracy of the number. He said he knows of at least one student who is currently attending college, and another who left Hana High to enroll in a foreign student exchange program but never came back, and the school lost track of her. Both students were listed as failing to have graduated.

In addition, Paul said he believes there are about 10 of the 160 students tested who have "too close to call" scores in math and were listed as having failed. If even two students' scores were recalculated, it's possible that Hana may meet the required proficiency levels for math.

"A too close to call means you didn't make it, and I'd just like to see it looked at again," Paul said.

Administrator Glenn Hirata of the Department of Education's Systems Evaluation and Reporting Section said he encourages school administrators to appeal their schools' adequate yearly progress reports if there is even the slightest question of accuracy.

"You cannot hurt yourself by submitting an appeal," Hirata said in a telephone call from Honolulu.

Every year, the public schools system receives about two dozen appeals from schools statewide. A few have won their appeals and had their school statuses changed.

Hirata's office collects and computes the data taken from the various tests given to students statewide.

"Our data may not be 100 percent accurate," Hirata said.

Hirata said it will take about a month to review the appeals. After that, his office will provide a report to public schools Superintendent Pat Hamamoto, who makes the final determination on an appeal.

* Claudine San Nicolas can be reached at claudine@mauinews.com.