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5 Area Schools Hit the Jackpot: Inaugural State Awards for Student Achievement Mean a $2,000 Bonus for Each Certified Employee.

Posted on: Thursday, 26 January 2006, 15:00 CST

By Andrea Eger, Tulsa World, Okla.

Jan. 26--Five Tulsa-area schools are among the first-ever recipients of the Oklahoma Academic Achievement Awards, which come with $2,000 cash prizes for teachers and other school staff members, officials announced Wednesday.

Eisenhower International School and Eugene Field and Lindbergh elementary schools in Tulsa, Hayward Elementary School in Owasso, and Okmulgee Middle School in Okmulgee are among the 10 winning schools. State Superintendent Sandy Garrett and the State Board of Education are set to present the principals and superintendents from the 10 schools with the awards Thursday morning at a meeting in Oklahoma City. The Academic Achievement Award program was established in 2005 through state legislation as a way to give teachers incentive pay for boosting student achievement. The legisla ture appropriated $500,000 for the program. The program recognizes two schools in each of five categories, based on student enrollment. Schools with the highest and most improved Academic Performance Index scores in each of the five categories receive the award. Every certified employee, including teachers, counselors and principals at the schools, will receive a check for about $2,000, according to a press statement from Garrett's office. Eugene Field Principal Cindi Hemm said teachers at her school "just went crazy" when she told them about the award this week. "I told them that we had won the Academic Achievement Award, and they were excited. And then I said, 'You haven't heard the best part -- you each get a check for $2,000,' " she said. "They were leaping and screaming and crying." Hemm said one teacher said she was going to use the money to take her own kids on a vacation to Disney World, and another said she was going to take a cruise. "You know, that's a whole month's pay for some teachers -- and teachers spend well over that amount out of their own pockets for school supplies every year," Hemm said. Eugene Field, at 2249 S. Phoenix Ave., was recognized for having the most improved API score among schools with between 236 and 345 students. Eisenhower had the highest API in the same category of schools as Eugene Field. Lindbergh was the most improved, and Hayward in Owasso had the highest API in the category of largest schools, with 506 or more students. Okmulgee Middle School posted the biggest improvement among schools with between 346 to 505 students. The Academic Performance Index is a numeric score that measures school performance. It is the foundation of Oklahoma's school accountability system, which is required under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Schools face penalties and sanctions if they do not meet federal standards for improvement in reading and math test scores, the number of students who take standardized tests, and attendance or graduation rates. In addition to the Tulsa-area schools, other recipients were Straight Elementary School in Texas County, Bokoshe Junior High School in LeFlore County, Okarche Elementary School in Kingfisher County, Oakridge Elementary School in Oklahoma City and Rivers Elementary School in Altus. ------------ Andrea Eger 581-8470 andrea.eger@tulsaworld.com

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Copyright (c) 2006, Tulsa World, Okla.

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Source: Tulsa World

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