The Natchez-Adams School District’s should be applauded for another year of improvement in test scores. For the second year in a row, test scores show improvement in both math and English for most schools in the district.

That alone is a reason to celebrate, but not a reason to rest, because the school district has yet to accomplish what we know and we hope school district officials know the district can achieve.

Statewide, 41.6% of students scored in the top two levels of the in the Mississippi Academic Assessment Program in English while 47.3% of students in the state scored in the top two levels in Math.

NASD students did not do as well, with nearly 25% of local students scoring in the top two levels in both Math and English.

The double-digit divide between the school district and the state average shows the district has much work to do.

School district officials say they are already making changes to the curriculum to address deficiencies discovered in the test scores. That is an encouraging sign.

Although tweaking the curriculum may help the district improve by a few percentage points, NASD administrators need to do whatever they can to make more significant strides in a shorter amount of time.

As we have advocated in recent years, we encourage NASD officials to examine administrative costs. As enrollment has decreased, administrative costs have only increased in recent years. We suggest officials should put its resources into the classroom, instead of the district’s top-heavy administration.

What we know is this. It will take more than tweaking to get our students to the same level as other students in the state. We need to examine every part of the district — not just curriculum — to find a solution.