ANACORTES, WA – A new state school recognition system is honoring 30 schools across the Northwest Educational Service District 189 (NWESD) region. The State Board of Education (SBE), the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), and the Educational Opportunity Gap Oversight and Accountability Committee (EOGOAC) have collaborated to revise the Washington State school recognition system to more equitably recognize schools. The new recognition system replaces the former Washington Achievement Awards.
The 30 schools recognized in the NWESD region include:
Bellingham SD | Lowell Elementary |
Blaine SD | Blaine Elementary |
Edmonds SD | Challenge Elementary |
Edmonds SD | Edmonds Career Access Program |
Edmonds SD | Sherwood Elementary |
Everett SD | Cedar Wood Elementary |
Everett SD | Garfield Elementary |
Everett SD | Madison Elementary |
Everett SD | Mill Creek Elementary |
Everett SD | North Middle School |
Ferndale SD | Cascadia Elementary |
Lake Stevens SD | Homelink |
Marysville SD | Grove Elementary |
Monroe SD | Chain Lake Elementary |
Mount Baker SD | Acme Elementary |
Mount Vernon SD | La Venture Middle School |
Oak Harbor SD | Hillcrest Elementary |
Orcas Island SD | Orcas Island High School |
San Juan Island SD | Friday Harbor High School |
Snohomish SD | Centennial Middle School |
Snohomish SD | Dutch Hill Elementary |
Snohomish SD | Machias Elementary |
Snohomish SD | Riverview Elementary |
South Whidbey SD | Langley Middle School |
South Whidbey SD | South Whidbey Academy |
Stanwood-Camano SD | Cedarhome Elementary |
Stanwood-Camano SD | Elger Bay Elementary |
Stanwood-Camano SD | Port Susan Middl School |
Sultan SD | Gold Bar Elementary |
Sultan SD | Sultan Elementary |
The SBE, EOGOAC, and OSPI are phasing in the revisions to the recognition system over the course of three years. In a press release issued by SBE, they stated, “The now outdated Washington Achievement Awards were based on measures, some of which are no longer computed, that tended to be highly correlated to the school Free and Reduced Price Lunch (FRL) rate. The SBE, OSPI, and EOGOAC all agreed that a change was needed.”
This spring, in the first phase of the new state school recognition system, 216 schools are being recognized which have demonstrated exemplary performance or who have made significant progress closing opportunity and achievement gaps in the Washington School Improvement Framework (WSIF) measures.
The first recognition event under the new system will be on June 6. This event will take place concurrently in both Olympia and Spokane.
Recognition Criteria
Measures for the first year include both growth and achievement on academic indicators (proficiency, growth, graduation rate, English language progress) as well as school quality and student success measures (dual credit participation, regular attendance, and ninth grade on track rates).
To see the list of schools or to learn more about the new school recognition system, visit http://sbe.wa.gov/our-work/accountability/2017-2018-state-recognized-schools.
About the NWESD
Located in Anacortes, the NWESD is one of nine Educational Service Districts in Washington State. The NWESD serves 35 school districts in Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish, Island, and San Juan counties, providing leadership and cooperative services to the educational communities in the northwest region.
Contact
Jessica Haag, NWESD Communications Specialist | 360-299-4714