Gettysburg Elementary Named 2007 National Blue Ribbon School

The Oct. 2 release of the 2007 National Blue Ribbon recipients by the U.S. Department of Education included our own Gettysburg Elementary School. Gettysburg is the only school in the Central Valley to receive this honor, and one of only 24 California public schools to receive the recognition this year. Congratulations to the staff, students and parents of Gettysburg Elementary.

The NCLB-Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a 24-year-old program that encourages states to nominate public kindergarten through grade twelve schools that are either academically superior or demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement. California public schools were chosen from among the 2006 California Distinguished Schools. Schools must fit one of two categories. The schools' student body must be comprised of 40 percent or more disadvantaged students whose level of proficiency places the school at the 60th percentile in English-language arts and mathematics in the highest grade tested when compared to other schools in the state. These schools must show dramatic growth in both content areas. Or, the school must show a student proficiency level that places the school at the 90th percentile in English-language arts and mathematics in the highest grade tested when compared to other schools in the state.

All awardees met the federal 2005, 2006 and 2007 Adequate Yearly Progress requirement and California Academic Performance Index growth targets. The schools will be honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. in November. Gettysburg follows Nelson Elementary, who was a 2006 Blue Ribbon winner. Forty percent of CUSD schools have received the award since the first National Exemplary School Awards were handed out for the 1984-85 school year.

Alta Sierra, Kastner make state history with 2008 Schools to Watch designation

On Jan. 7 Alta Sierra and Kastner intermediate schools made history when they were designated as 2008 Schools To Watch – Taking Center Stage model schools in California. For the first time in the history of California’s participation in the Schools To Watch program, two of the honored schools are from the same district. The two Clovis Unified schools joined only one other California school, Torch Middle School in LA County, recognized in the 2008 award cycle.

The schools received the recognition for implementing replicable practices focused on academic excellence, responsiveness to the developmental needs of young adolescents; fair and equitable education for all students; and organizational processes and procedures that foster and sustain academic growth. In addition to an application for the award, the schools both received validation visits before Winter Break by a team of educators.

Of note to judges in determining the 2008 Schools to Watch was both schools' ability to raise academic performance of students from a wide range of ethnic and social backgrounds.

California’s Schools To Watch – Taking Center Stage program is a collaborative endeavor of 10 organizations that form the California Middle Grades Alliance.  The three 2008 Schools to Watch will be formally recognized at the annual California League of Middle Schools annual conference in Sacramento, Feb. 29 through March 2, 2008. There, they will be given their first opportunity to showcase their accomplishments and network with other middle school educators from around the state.

"I commend these three schools for demonstrating the leadership, innovation, and resolve required to overcome the achievement gap and ensure all students become engaged and successful learners,” said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell announced today the names of three middle schools. “Middle grades educators throughout our state and nation can look to these model middle schools for knowledge, ideas, and inspiration when preparing their students to be productive citizens and future leaders.”


Three from Clovis Unified Earn Top History Prize in U.S.

When the winners of the 2007 National History Day awards were announced June 14, three Clovis Unified students were at the top of the list; bringing home first place prizes in the junior and senior categories.

Buchanan High School students Chelsea Gonzales and Kimi Ibello placed first in Group Documentary at the Maryland. In addition to first place, they won a $5,000 award from the History Channel. The title of their documentary was: “An Unlikely Hero: Japanese Visas to Save the Jews.” It was a 10-minute documentary about Chiune Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat who rescued over 3,000 Jews by issuing Japanese visas to them.

From Alta Sierra, Taylor Sakamoto placed first at National History Day with her junior historical paper entitled “The Triumphs and Tragedies of Japanese Women in America: A View Across Four Generations.” Taylor, who last week completed the eighth grade at Alta Sierra Intermediate, will attend Buchanan High School next year.

Overall there were three projects from Buchanan High School that competed at National History Day. Eve Morris presented an individual documentary entitled, “Married to the Media: The Triumph and Tragedy of Amelia Earhart.” A group performance about the Berlin Wall was presented by Alec Esquivel, Michael Cruz, Lainie Clemings, Brittany Darrow, And Caitlin Schlosser.

From Alta Sierra, Natalie Meier placed tenth in the nation with her individual performance entitled: “Taking the Lid Off a National Scandal: Teapot Dome and the Politics of Power.” Also competing from Alta Sierra was a group performance about the Salem Witch Trials presented by students Lauren DiSanto, Lauren Everson, Madison Scharmann, Kathryn Ashford, and Jane Millar.

Coaches for the students above from Alta Sierra and Buchanan High are Carole Smoot, Jon Smoot, Linda Linder and Rob Darrow. There are 500,000 students who compete nationally in History Day. These students placed first at the county and state competition before competing at National History Day.

National History Day website: http://www.nhd.org/2007winners.htm

Clovis Unified Launches New Web Site

• Important news and information is featured in the "Clovis Unified Headlines" section of the home page. This information changes frequently to reflect current information about CUSD schools and programs.
• The 11 tabs spanning the top menu bar provide entry points for key elements of the new site. These tabs are designed to provide key users of the site (parents, employees, job seekers and media) with quick access to information designed specifically for them.
• Tabs such as those for "Departments" and "Programs" provide access to information sorted by the Clovis Unified department or program area. On department pages users can find a link to a directory of department personnel, important resources created by a given department, and other useful information.
• The "Search" tab allows users to search the CUSD site only, or to conduct web searches using Google.
• The "Quick Links" feature on the right-hand side of the home page provides direct links to the most frequently visited pages of the site. The list was created based on data collected from the previous site which ranked the most popular pages by number of visitors per month. These links will be updated periodically to ensure the pages most frequently accessed are available through a single link.
• The newly designed site does not include several navigation buttons that appeared on the old site. The information contained in these buttons can now be found on the following pages: Air Quality information can be found on the parent and employee pages, technology information can be found under "Applications" on the Information Technology department page.

Clovis Student Wins First at National Science Competition

Clovis West sophomore Nilesh Tripureneni has been named first place winner in the National Junior Science & Humanities Symposium. His original research on hydrogen fuel production from seawater won him top honors among other junior scientists from around the nation, a $16,000 scholarship and a two-week trip to London.

In London, Nilesh will join 60 other young scientists at an international science forum. His project involves shining light on two chemically treated plates submerged in seawater. The homemade plates cause the natural synthetic properties of chlorophyll to separate the hydrogen and oxygen found in the seawater. The resulting hydrogen is captured as it floats to the surface. Nilesh's project qualified for the national competition after advancing from local and regional science competitions.

Nelson Elementary named 2006 National NCLB - Blue Ribbon School.

The US Department of Education has declared Nelson Elementary School a 2006 No Child Left Behind – Blue Ribbon School. Nelson Elementary School is the only public or private school in California's Central Valley to be included on the list of 2006 winners. Nelson Elementary was one of 250 schools nationwide recognized.

Schools must fit one of the two following categories:  The schools' student body must be comprised of 40 percent or more disadvantaged students whose level of proficiency places the school at the 60th percentile in English-language arts and mathematics in the highest grade tested when compared to other schools in the state. For all other schools, the school must show a student proficiency level that places the school at the 90th percentile in English-language arts and mathematics in the highest grade tested when compared to other schools in the state.

All public school awardees met the federal 2005 and 2006 Adequate Yearly Progress and the Academic Performance Index school wide growth targets. The schools were either California Distinguished Schools or, at minimum, met the qualifications required to apply for that state awards program. Nominated schools submitted an application to the U.S. Department of Education. The weight of the criteria rested overwhelmingly on growth and achievement in reading and mathematics over three years, including those for significant subgroups. 

The winners will be honored November 9-10, 2006, at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.  For more information on the NCLB-Blue Ribbon Schools Program, please visit http://www.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/awards.html.