Two Local Schools Receive Distinguished Honor

Only about 800 schools were invited to apply.

And out of that group, just 343 made the cut.

Two of these schools are from the Bonita Unified School District, which serves both San Dimas and La Verne.

Shull Elementary in San Dimas and Oak Mesa Elementary in La Verne were both selected as 2008 California Distinguished Schools.

“From my perceptions, both schools are distinguished in the way they serve their students and their communities,” said Bonita Unified Superintendent Dr. Gary Rapkin. “I was pleased that (the schools) were going to get state recognition for things that certainly, I had observed already.”

Through a very rigorous application process, the California Department of Education seeks to choose schools based on several different categories, including a signature attribute that makes it unique.

Shull Elementary School Principal Chris Ann Horsley chose to present the school’s great student support systems.

According to Horsely, the institution has high rates of volunteerism, with parents, grandparents and the community working about 8,000 hours a year.

This includes helping with student tutoring and teacher preparation.

Oak Mesa also has high volunteerism rates. According to the school’s principal, Karen Eberhart, volunteers donate about 10,000 hours every year.

For Oak Mesa’s signature attribute, Eberhart sought to highlight the leadership that starts at the district level, then continues on to the school principal and ends with the teachers.

“We’re all working together for the common goal of student success. We have great communication and continually look at what we can do to improve students’ achievement,” Eberhart said.

But one of the aspects of the application process that the California Department of Education looks at is the applicant’s Academic Performance Index scores.

It’s not just about how high the scores are. It’s more about the improvement seen from year to year.

And both schools have continually showed improvement in all subgroups of the school.

Also, in any school setting, enrichment programs are a big part of any student’s success.

This was an area the California Department of Education also took into consideration during the rigorous selection process.

Both schools boast art, instrumental music, physical education and hands-on history lessons.

“I think both communities can be very, very proud (of this award) and the parents can have a very clear sense that their children are very well cared for in their academic life,” Rapkin said. “It’s also about the nurturing and the culture of high expectations that takes place at these schools.”

Representatives from Shull and Oak Mesa elementary schools will receive formal recognition during a ceremony at the Anaheim Disney Hotel on May 16.

maritza.velazquez@sgvn.com

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