Closing achievement gaps for some groups of students has been identified as a top priority by both Gainesville City and Hall County school officials in a comprehensive needs assessments required under the Every Student Succeeds Act. Officials with both districts said this week they are finishing their assessments required by Georgia’s Department of Education. The department released a 94-page draft of its plan under the ESSA, which was passed by Congress in 2015 as the replacement for the federal law widely known as No Child Left Behind.