In order to be eligible to apply for the 2008 elementary cycle, schools must meet the following requirements:
- Eligible Grade Levels
- Previous Distinguished School Status
- Number of Years in Operation
- Assessment Results as Measured by:
- No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
- Academic Performance Index (API)
- Intervention or Sanction Status
Eligible Grade Levels
The California Department of Education (CDE) has developed standard criteria to define schools as elementary, middle, or high for the API. For the purposes of the California School Recognition Program, schools are required to use the school type assigned to them by those criteria. A school defined as “elementary” on its API report has met the grade eligibility requirement for the 2008 cycle. Information regarding school type designations is available at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ap/.
Previous Distinguished School Status
2006 Distinguished Elementary Schools are not eligible to apply this cycle. They may apply for recognition again in the 2010 cycle.
Number of Years in Operation
Schools must have been operating since 2005-06 in order for growth results to be calculated for the API.
Assessment Results
In order to apply for the Distinguished School Award, schools must meet the eligibility criteria for AYP and API.
- NCLB AYP Eligibility
Schools must make AYP as reported on the 2007 Adequate Yearly Progress Report. More information regarding AYP is available at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ay/.
- API Eligibility
Schools must fall into one of the two following categories:
- Elementary schools with a schoolwide 2007 Growth API of at least 758 (the midpoint of the statewide distribution) and not greater than 799
- Schoolwide 2007 Growth API must meet or exceed the school's growth target.
- All numerically significant subgroups must make at least 5 percent of the difference between the subgroup Base API and 800. If a subgroup's score was at or above 800, it must remain at or above 800.
-- OR --
- Schoolwide 2007 Growth API must meet or exceed the school's growth target.
- Elementary schools with a schoolwide 2007 Growth API of 800 or above and a Growth API of 800 or above for all numerically significant subgroups have no other additional qualifying conditions.
- Elementary schools with a schoolwide 2007 Growth API of at least 758 (the midpoint of the statewide distribution) and not greater than 799
Intervention or Sanction Status
Schools that participate in the state Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program (II/USP) or are subject to the School Assistance and Intervention Team (SAIT) interventions are not eligible to apply for this program. Schools that are subject to federal Program Improvement (PI) sanctions are, likewise, not eligible to apply for this program.
Additional Information
Schools in the Process of Correcting Data
The 2007 AYP and API reports will be released for public information on August 31, 2007. Districts may, on behalf of their schools, make data corrections for AYP and/or API.
Schools for which districts are making data corrections may begin the 2008 Distinguished Elementary School Application process if their district offices are confident the schools will ultimately meet the eligibility criteria based on the final AYP and API reports released in January 2008. It is the responsibility of these schools to determine if they are willing to submit an application by the December 2007 deadline, knowing that final eligibility for these schools will not be determined until mid-January 2008.
Schools With Testing Irregularities
Schools for which districts have concluded that an adult testing irregularity occurred are ineligible to apply.
Schools With Outstanding State and Federal Issues of Non-Compliance
While outstanding issues of non-compliance do not affect a school’s eligibility, districts should be aware that any school with an unresolved compliance issue may be prevented from receiving the California Distinguished School designation.
