Closing the "achievement gap" is more than a top goal for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school system.

It's become a household phrase.

To most, the gap is explained with bar graphs and figures. School board members show commitment to closing it through quotes and sound bites. Memos sent home in backpacks describe new policies and tougher standards.

But what do the real players in the story -- black students -- think about the achievement gap?

For the third installment of an occasional series on the achievement gap, The Chapel Hill News asked three recent graduates and one current high school student to talk about their high school experiences.

Deryle Daniels Jr. At Chapel Hill High, Deryle Daniels Jr. could count on being one of the only black students in his advanced placement and honors courses.

He was used to it. Daniels, an 18-year-old recent graduate, has been in gifted classes since second grade.

The achievement gap even shows up in his social circles. Most of his A.P. class friends are white or Asian. The others are black or Latino.

Daniels will soon start at UNC-Greensboro, where he plans to study business administration.

ON CHAPEL HILL HIGH'S REPUTATION FOR EXCELLENCE: I think Chapel Hill High definitely prepared me for the real world better than most schools probably prepare students to go to college.

When it comes to competition, you have to work that much harder (at Chapel Hill High) to be at the top. And nobody wants to be at the bottom.

ON FRIENDS: With one group of friends I hang out with, we have cultural things in common. We all like to chill and play basketball.

Then I have my friends who I chill with because I'm in their A.P. or honors class. That's when I have to stretch myself and go outside my comfort zone.

Those are the friends I'm most proud to have. It shows I'm able to adjust to different situations and still be who I am.

ON PERCEPTION OF RACE: Just yesterday, I walked into this store. There's this tall, tall black guy in there. "He might be a basketball player," was the first thing I thought. That's something we have to work on. Why couldn't he be a doctor?

HOW THE SCHOOLS COULD DO MORE TO HELP: You've got major computer issues. If you could put a computer in the home of every child who needs one, that would be a big step.

From an earlier age, they need to start preparing minority kids for higher education. I know kids, because of their parents, who took the SAT in seventh and eighth grade. They've been preparing forever. Their parents went to college, so they know what needs to happen.

A lot of these black kids in Chapel Hill? They'll be first-time college graduates. They need teachers guiding them. Everybody's parents didn't go to college.

Luther Allison Luther Allison, 20, is the type of student politely described by educators as "at risk."

For much of his high school experience, Allison's father has been in prison. His mother has gone in and out of drug rehab. He failed ninth grade twice.

But during his junior year at Chapel Hill High, Allison turned his grades around. Sympathetic teachers and staff kept him motivated and encouraged him to study hard after school.

Allison is now headed to Alamance Community College to study welding.

ON EXPECTATIONS: Some teachers, they expected me to move at the same pace as the others. Sometimes that's just not possible.

But (in one class,) every day I came in, I had my hand raised. I knew the answers. But (the teacher) would still call on another student.

When she'd do that, I'd say the answer out loud and I'd get in trouble for talking out loud. I mean, sometimes I'd be the only one with my hand raised!

They started monitoring the class and pulling students out one-on-one for questioning. That's when they found out it really wasn't my fault.

They got me out of the class and that was that. She wanted me to be something that I wasn't.

ON A POSITIVE CLASSROOM EXPERIENCE: I'd say Evon Barnes, English III.

The days I wanted to go to the back, she knew I was tired and didn't feel like working. But those were the days she made me sit in the front. She wouldn't let me go to sleep and made sure I was on top of my homework.

Once I started taking tests and didn't have to look over my shoulder and cheat or just guess, it made me feel great that I actually knew what I was doing. I give her a lot of credit for that.

ON FRIENDS: Out of everybody I hung with, everybody graduated except for one.

I can say I got them through school. When they saw me after school, they wanted to stay after school. They said, "Luther can do it. I guess I can, too."

If everybody had a couple of people that cared for them, we could get out of the trap. As an African-American, you just gotta know people are there for you.

ON CHAPEL HILL HIGH: I can't say it's one of the best high schools in the state. When it comes to education, they push for the best. I'll say that.

But that's where the conflict kicks in. By you wanting your school to look good on the numbers and scores, sometimes you're pushing people too hard. And it won't work. They'll crumble in the end.

You have to keep everyone caught up. You can't say, "I'll come back and get you." It might just be too late.

Saykwan Woods With his freshman year behind him, Saykwan Woods, 16, is still fairly new at Chapel Hill High.

We caught up with Woods outside the Hargraves Community Center in the late afternoon.

ON CHAPEL HILL'S EDUCATIONAL PRESTIGE: I'm not really sure about all that. It ain't all that, but it's a good school. Sometimes the work is easy; sometimes it's complicated.

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS DO TO HELP YOU SUCCEED?

They bring education up all the time. They're always on me to pass my grade and do my work.

Like with a D. It's not that good, but it's still passing. As long as it's nothing below a D, they'll be all right.

But if it's below a D, they might say you need to bring it up and study or whatever. I've never had anything lower than a D, so I'm all right.

My worst subject is social studies. My best subject? I'd say math. I passed with a 90-something. That's pretty good.

Ashley Harrington Ashley Harrington, 18, recently graduated from East Chapel Hill High as a prestigious Morehead Scholar.

At East, she belonged to the Minority Student Achievement Network, a coalition of 25 school systems committed to closing the achievement gap. She was also co-president of the Future Advancement of Minority Education club.

Harrington, whose strengths lie in English and foreign languages, will start as a UNC freshman in a few weeks. With the achievement gap in mind, she also plans to study public policy.

ONE SUGGESTION THAT COULD HELP CLOSE THE GAP: Every time students work for the better -- somebody moves from a D to a C -- they should get some kind of a reward.

Not just an award for the kids, but an award for the teachers, too. That's the person bringing the student up.

It's just a positive reinforcement system. We don't want to wait until somebody gets an A to say, "Job well done." You want to reward them for working harder.

ON THE GAP IN CHAPEL HILL: I think it's such a huge issue. It's everywhere. Not just in Chapel Hill, but all over the country.

We have so much money and such a great reputation here. It should be that everyone is equal. But, you know, everyone in the country went through racial segregation. And we haven't gone too far past that now.

WHAT SCHOOL LEADERS ARE DOING WRONG: I feel like they talk about the problems, but I don't think they talk about them with the right people.

They talk about it in committees and among themselves. But a lot of parents aren't informed. A lot of kids aren't informed.

I'm not just referring to minority parents. Everybody needs to know about these issues because they all play a part.

I really feel there are a lot of administrators who really do care about the achievement gap. We have all these plans. But we're not sure if they really work.