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5 Kern schools honored with 'distinguished' award
| Monday, Apr 16 2007 11:31 PM
Last Updated: Monday, Apr 16 2007 11:31 PM
Five Kern County schools were honored Monday with California’s “Distinguished Schools” awards.
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The results were released by the California Department of Education, according to a Kern County Superintendent of Schools release.
The schools are:
Kern High School District: Kern Valley High School and Stockdale High School
Kernville Union School District: Woodrow W. Wallace Middle School
Panama-Buena Vista Union School District: Earl Warren Junior High School and Tevis Junior High School
The honored schools have connections: the junior high schools are feeders to the high schools, said KHSD Superintendent Don Carter.
Tevis and Warren feed into Stockdale High, said Stockdale Assistant Principal Matt Watkins. Wallace feeds into Kern Valley.
“While Stockdale is doing a great job, we get good kids,” Watkins said.
The schools are out of 171 California public junior high, middle and high schools to be honored May 18 at an awards ceremony at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, according to the release.
Wallace Middle School Principal Todd Farr said it was a “testimony” to the hard work put in by teachers, staff and district leaders.
“I believe great schools make great communities,” he said. “I believe it’s a testament to all of the positive things that are happening in very tough times in education.”
Great parents and teachers who work collaboratively contribute to the success at tight-knit Warren Junior High, said Principal George Thornburgh.
“The biggest thing we talk about around here is the school culture,” he said. “We’re called the Wildcat family for a lot of reasons.”
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell called each school’s principal in the morning to share the news, according to his office.
This year, the selected middle and high schools represent about seven percent of California’s nearly 2,400 middle and high schools. Of those, only 478 schools met the eligibility criteria based on their student achievement, according to the release.
Of these, 279 schools chose to submit an application, describing in-depth their curriculum, instructional program, supports for students and school climate, according to the release.
The education department, educators around the state and the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association evaluated the applications.
Outside educators reviewed all nominee schools during site validations.
The schools were evaluated by teams of local educators under the direction of the education department, and those schools judged to be exemplary were visited by an outside review team to validate the application information, according to the release.