McAuliffe Middle School, one of two middle schools in the Los Alamitos Unified School District, was among the 35 California schools nominated for the 2012 National Blue Ribbon Schools Program.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson redently announced the selection of 35 public schools as California’s nominees to the 2012 program.
The program recognizes some of the highest-performing and most improved schools in the nation.
Each year the U.S. Department of Education outlines the categories for nomination. In 2012 there are two categories:
Exemplary High-Performing Schools: Schools that achieve at least the 85th percentile statewide in the percent of students scoring proficient or advanced in English-language arts and mathematics on the state assessments.
Schools nominated in this category may or may not have at least 40 percent of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Exemplary Improving Schools: Schools with at least 40 percent of their students from a disadvantaged background that are also among the top 10 percent of schools in the state showing the greatest improvement in the percent of students scoring proficient or advanced in ELA and mathematics on the state assessments over the last five years.
To be eligible for preliminary nomination for the 2012 award, a school must have made the federal goals as outlined in Adequate Yearly Progress in 2011 and 2010 and also made its state Academic Performance Index (API) targets (school-wide and for all numerically significant student groups) in 2011 and 2010.
For final nomination as a 2012 BRSP, a school must meet all of its 2012 API and AYP targets, including those for the school overall and for all numerically significant student groups.
The final nomination check is completed in August/September of 2012.
Based on student population, California may nominate up to 35 schools each year.
The National BRSP is part of a larger U. S. Department of Education effort to identify and disseminate knowledge about best school leadership and teaching practices.
For more information on the federal program, visit:http://www2.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/awards.html.
The Los Alamitos Unified School District serves nearly 10,000 students in Seal Beach, Rossmoor, and Los Alamitos.
The district includes Los Alamitos High School, a full service high school, Laurel High School, a continuation high school, McAuliffe Middle School, Oak Middle School, and six elementary schools.
Meg Cutuli is the current president of the Board of Education. Dr. Sherry Kropp is the superintendant of the Los Alamitos Unified School District.
