Dewey Elementary Receives National Distinction
2006 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon School
U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings announced the 2006 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools on September 22. Among the honorees is San Diego Unified School District’s Dewey Elementary School, one of only two schools in San Diego County to earn this national recognition. Dewey joins Jerabek Elementary, Scripps Ranch High and Mira Mesa High as the SDUSD schools to receive this prestigious award. In a statement released on September 22, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell congratulated the 31 public schools and four private schools in California identified as 2006 No Child Left Behind (NCLB)—Blue Ribbon Schools.
"I nominated these schools last year for this national distinction because their students made significant gains in academic achievement,” said O’Connell. "Everyone involved in these students’ lives deserves credit for helping them make these gains that we hope will ultimately help students develop the mastery of skills necessary to be successful adults."
NCLB—Blue Ribbon Schools is a national recognition program of the U.S. Department of Education. The 23-year-old program encourages states to nominate public kindergarten through grade twelve schools that are either academically superior or demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement. Private schools are nominated by the Council for American Private Education. Dewey Principal Vera Valdivia is grateful that her school’s hard work is being recognized. She is quick to credit her teachers for the school’s success.
“The teachers are the ones working 12 hour days and weekends,” she said. “It’s their hard work and dedication, along with very supportive parents, that produced the results that earned us this honor. I am proud to work with such outstanding educators and parents.”
Next month, Valdivia and a teacher from Dewey will travel to Washington, D.C. to accept the award at a ceremony being held on November 9 – 10.