Seven elementary schools in Sacramento County are among those announced February 16 by the California Department of Education as nominees in the Distinguished Schools Program. Four additional schools have been awarded "Honorable Mention Certificates" for outstanding achievement.
Sacramento-area schools chosen as Distinguished School Statewide Nominees include:
- Oak Hill Elementary School (Center Unified School District)
- James McKee Elementary School (Elk Grove Unified School District)
- Sierra Enterprise Elementary School (Elk Grove Unified School District)
- Cordova Meadows (Elementary School Folsom Cordova Unified School District)
- Orchard Elementary School (Rio Linda Union School District)
- Thomas Jefferson Elementary School (Sacramento City Unified School District)
- Harry Dewey Fundamental School (San Juan Unified School District)
Site visits will be made to each of the schools to validate its nomination. An awards ceremony, slated to be held May 5, will honor those schools which are chosen as Distinguished Schools for 2000. The final list of Distinguished Schools is scheduled to be announced on April 7 by the California Department of Education.
Schools awarded Honorable Mention Certificates include:
- Hubert H. Bancroft Elementary School (Sacramento City Unified School District)
- Cambridge Heights Alternative Elementary School (San Juan Unified School District)
- Starr King Elementary School (San Juan Unified School District)
- Trajan Elementary School (San Juan Unified School District)
Distinguished School applications were submitted by 681 elementary schools from throughout the state—the largest number of applications in the program's history. Of those, 230 schools were selected as statewide nominees to receive a site visit. Honorable Mention Certificates were awarded to 178 schools.
Schools selected as Distinguished School nominees demonstrated, through their written applications, successful teaching and learning, high standards for all students, strong family and community involvement, partnerships with the business community, safe and clean school environments, and effective use of technology.
Specific information regarding criteria and scoring is available by calling Carol Kennedy, California School Recognition Program, (916) 657-4316.
Year 2000 Distinguished Schools will be invited to apply to the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program in fall 2000 if they meet requirements related to achievement data.