INFORMATIONAL

TO:

Division Superintendents

FROM:

Jo Lynne DeMary

Superintendent of Public Instruction

SUBJECT:

National Title I Distinguished Schools, State Title I Distinguished Schools, and No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools Recognitions

The purpose of this memorandum is to announce three different opportunities for recognition of schools in the commonwealth and encourage school divisions to nominate eligible schools according to the criteria. The details for each of the three options, National Title I Distinguished Schools, State Title I Distinguished Schools, and No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools are listed below.

National Title I Distinguished Schools

The National Association of State Title I Directors, through its National Title I Distinguished Schools Recognition Program, has invited each state to nominate: 1) one Title I school that has exhibited exceptional student performance for two or more consecutive years; and 2) one Title I school that has made the most progress in significantly closing the achievement gap among the No Child Left Behind student subgroups. In addition to the national requirements, the nominated school must also have met the state criteria for making adequate yearly progress.

Your school division is invited to nominate one Title I school to represent either of the categories indicated above. A peer review process will be used to select the two Virginia schools for national recognition. Recipients of these awards will be announced on November 14, 2005, as a part of American Education Week. They will also be recognized during the National Title I Conference in Dallas, Texas, scheduled for January 26-31,2006.

Attachment A contains information the applicant will need to complete for the submission process. Nomination must be submitted by Friday, September 30, 2005, close of business.

State Title I Distinguished Schools

Section 1117(b)(2) of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires states to establish a State Title I Distinguished Schools Recognition Program to recognize schools that meet the following criteria: 1) significantly close the achievement gap (as defined by the state) among the No Child Left Behind student subgroups; and 2) exceed the adequate yearly progress targets, as set by the state for two or more consecutive years.

To comply with the federal requirement, Virginia will select State Title I Distinguished Schools for the 2005-2006 school year by determining which Title I schools meet the criteria specified above. Schools will not be required to submit an application to be considered as a State Title I Distinguished School, but instead will be notified by the Virginia Department of Education regarding their selection for this recognition.

No Child Left Behind – Blue Ribbon Schools

The No Child Left Behind – Blue Ribbon Schools Recognition Program honors elementary and secondary schools that have made significant progress in closing the achievement gap or schools that have students achieving at the highest levels. This program recognizes and presents elementary and secondary schools as models that meet at least one of the following criteria: 1) achieve at the highest levels in reading and mathematics on state assessments and have 40 percent or more of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds; 2) dramatically improve student performance; or 3) achieve in the top 10 percent in reading and mathematics on state tests, regardless of background.

If you would like for the Virginia Department of Education to consider a school from your division as a 2005-2006 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon nominee from Virginia, please send an e-mail indicating the name of the school to Kathleen.Smith@doe.virginia.gov by Monday, October 3, 2005. The department will select nominees based on the eligibility criteria required by United States Department of Education. Information pertaining to eligibility is available for your review at

http://www.ed.gov/program/nclbbrs/eligibility.html.

For questions regarding the National Title I Distinguished Schools Recognition Program, please contact Gabie Frazier at (804) 225-2907 or Gabie.Frazier@doe.virginia.gov. For questions regarding the State Title I Distinguished Schools Recognition Program and the No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools Recognition Program, please contact Kathleen Smith at (804) 786-5819 or Kathleen.Smith@doe.virginia.gov.

JLD/GF/hmt

Attachment

http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/suptsmemos/2005/inf187a.doc