State Superintendent Tony Thurmond Announces 2021 California Distinguished Schools

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond today announced that over 100 middle and high schools are being honored under the 2021 California Distinguished Schools Program. Amid the backdrop of uncertainty and hardship facing all California schools this past year, this recognition is especially remarkable.

The California Department of Education (CDE) identifies and awards eligible schools based on performance and progress on state indicators specified on the California School Dashboard, the state’s accountability and continuous improvement system. Indicators include test scores, suspension rates, and conditions and climate.

“These schools are great examples of California’s commitment to provide outstanding public education for all students, and their data-driven efforts have helped ensure that their students leave with the tools and skills they need to be successful after graduation,” Thurmond said. “Our thanks go to the entire communities surrounding these schools, including the teachers, administrators, and classified employees as well as the students and their families who, through teamwork, all accomplished this impressive achievement together.”

Sponsored by the CDE and presented by California Casualty, the Distinguished Schools Program recognizes schools for their excellent work in one of two categories: closing the achievement gap and achieving exceptional student performance. Elementary schools and middle and high schools are recognized in alternate years; therefore, awardees hold the title for two years. The list of recognized schools is attached at the end of this press release.

Distinguished Schools represent examples of not just excellent teaching, learning, and collaboration, but also highly successful, data-driven school efforts ranging from professional development to positive behavior intervention.

For example, La Cañada High in La Cañada Unified (Los Angeles County) qualified for the award based on exceptional student performance. Between 2018 and 2019, Dashboard data shows that multiple student groups—including Socioeconomically Disadvantaged, Students with Disabilities, and English Learner student subgroups—improved their performance level (color) on both the English Language Arts and the Mathematics indicators.

Mammoth Middle School in Mammoth Unified School District (Mono County) made significant progress toward closing achievement gaps for several groups. English learners, Hispanic, and Socioeconomically Disadvantaged student subgroups in particular all increased scores on their English Language Arts assessments. The school district implemented numerous programs to help struggling students, including intervention, support classes and tutoring, and ongoing professional development for educators with Focused Schools.

Marysville Charter Academy for the Arts in Marysville Joint Unified (Yuba County) improved 15 points or more on the Mathematics indicator for socioeconomically disadvantaged students, Hispanic students, and all students, according to data on the California Dashboard. After studying their data, school leaders recognized all subgroups needed improvement in math, with Hispanic students furthest from meeting the standard. To help increase math scores, school leaders increased professional learning opportunities, implemented staff mentoring, held staff and student tutoring, and provided professional development in math pedagogy.

For more information, please visit the CDE California Distinguished Schools web page.

2021 California Distinguished Schools

County	District	School Name
Alameda	Albany City Unified	Albany Middle
Alameda	Berkeley Unified	Martin Luther King Middle
Alameda	Castro Valley Unified	Canyon Middle
Alameda	Dublin Unified	Eleanor Murray Fallon
Alameda	Livermore Valley Joint Unified	William Mendenhall Middle
Alameda	Oakland Unified	Downtown Charter Academy
Alameda	Piedmont City Unified	Piedmont Middle
Alameda	Pleasanton Unified	Harvest Park Middle
Alameda	Pleasanton Unified	Pleasanton Middle
Contra Costa	Mt. Diablo Unified	Foothill Middle
Contra Costa	San Ramon Valley Unified	Iron Horse Middle
Contra Costa	San Ramon Valley Unified	Stone Valley Middle
El Dorado	Buckeye Union Elementary	Rolling Hills Middle
El Dorado	Latrobe	Miller's Hill
El Dorado	Rescue Union Elementary	Marina Village Middle
Fresno	Clovis Unified	Clark Intermediate
Fresno	Fresno Unified	Baird Middle
Fresno	Fresno Unified	Edison Computech
Fresno	Kings Canyon Joint Unified	General Grant Middle
Fresno	Kingsburg Elementary Charter	Rafer Johnson Junior High
Kern	Fruitvale Elementary	Fruitvale Junior High
Los Angeles	Arcadia Unified	Richard Henry Dana Middle
Los Angeles	Burbank Unified	Luther Burbank Middle
Los Angeles	Garvey Elementary	Garvey (Richard) Intermediate
Los Angeles	Garvey Elementary	Temple (Roger W.) Intermediate
Los Angeles	La Cañada Unified	La Cañada High
Los Angeles	Las Virgenes Unified	Alice C. Stelle Middle
Los Angeles	Long Beach Unified	Helen Keller Middle
Los Angeles	Long Beach Unified	Hughes Middle
Los Angeles	Long Beach Unified	Marshall Academy of the Arts
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Unified	Alliance Gertz-Ressler Richard Merkin 6-12 Complex
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Unified	James Jordan Middle
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Unified	KIPP Los Angeles College Preparatory
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Unified	KIPP Sol Academy
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Unified	Larchmont Charter
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Unified	Libertas College Preparatory Charter
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Unified	Renaissance Arts Academy
Los Angeles	Norwalk-La Mirada Unified	Arlie F. Hutchinson Middle
Los Angeles	Norwalk-La Mirada Unified	Los Coyotes Middle
Los Angeles	Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified	Palos Verdes Intermediate
Los Angeles	San Gabriel Unified	Jefferson Middle
Los Angeles	South Pasadena Unified	South Pasadena Middle
Los Angeles	Torrance Unified	Bert M. Lynn Middle
Los Angeles	Torrance Unified	Calle Mayor Middle
Los Angeles	Torrance Unified	Casimir Middle
Los Angeles	Torrance Unified	Edward J. Richardson Middle
Los Angeles	Torrance Unified	Madrona Middle
Los Angeles	West Covina Unified	Hollencrest Middle
Los Angeles	William S. Hart Union High	Placerita Junior High
Los Angeles	William S. Hart Union High	Rancho Pico Junior High
Los Angeles	William S. Hart Union High	Rio Norte Junior High
Los Angeles	Wiseburn Unified	Richard Henry Dana Middle
Madera	Alview-Dairyland Union Elementary	Dairyland Elementary
Marin	Larkspur-Corte Madera	Hall Middle
Marin	Mill Valley Elementary	Mill Valley Middle
Mono	Mammoth Unified	Mammoth Middle
Monterey	Pacific Grove Unified	Pacific Grove Middle
Monterey	Washington Union Elementary	San Benancio Middle
Orange	Anaheim Union High	Oxford Academy
Orange	Capistrano Unified	Ladera Ranch Middle
Orange	Fullerton Elementary	D. Russell Parks Junior High
Orange	Garden Grove Unified	Hilton D. Bell Intermediate
Orange	Garden Grove Unified	James Irvine Intermediate
Orange	Garden Grove Unified	Sarah McGarvin Intermediate
Orange	Irvine Unified	Lakeside Middle
Orange	Los Alamitos Unified	Sharon Christa McAuliffe Middle
Orange	Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified	Col. J. K. Tuffree Middle
Orange	Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified	Kraemer Middle
Orange	Westminster	Helen Stacey Middle
Placer	Western Placer Unified	Glen Edwards Middle
Riverside	Hemet Unified	Western Center Academy
Riverside	Murrieta Valley Unified	Dorothy McElhinney Middle
Riverside	Temecula Valley Unified	Erle Stanley Gardner Middle
Riverside	Temecula Valley Unified	James L. Day Middle
Sacramento	Folsom-Cordova Unified	Folsom Middle
Sacramento	Natomas Unified	Natomas Pacific Pathways Prep Middle
Sacramento	Twin Rivers Unified	Westside Preparatory Charter
San Bernardino	San Bernardino City Unified	Richardson Prep Hi
San Bernardino	Victor Valley Union High	Cobalt Institute of Math and Science Academy
San Bernardino	Victor Valley Union High	University Preparatory
San Diego	Bonsall Unified	Norman L. Sullivan Middle
San Diego	Poway Unified	Black Mountain Middle
San Diego	San Diego County Office of Education	Literacy First Charter
San Diego	San Diego Unified	Challenger Middle
San Diego	San Diego Unified	Lewis Middle
San Diego	San Diego Unified	Magnolia Science Academy San Diego
San Diego	San Diego Unified	Marshall Middle
San Diego	San Diego Unified	Preuss School UCSD
San Diego	San Dieguito Union High	Diegueno Middle
San Francisco	San Francisco Unified	Roosevelt Middle
San Mateo	Belmont-Redwood Shores Elementary	Ralston Intermediate
San Mateo	Burlingame Elementary	Burlingame Intermediate
San Mateo	Portola Valley Elementary	Corte Madera
Santa Clara	Alum Rock Union Elementary	KIPP Heartwood Academy
Santa Clara	Berryessa Union Elementary	Morrill Middle
Santa Clara	Cupertino Union	Joaquin Miller Middle
Santa Clara	Cupertino Union	Sam H. Lawson Middle
Santa Clara	Franklin-McKinley Elementary	College Connection Academy
Santa Clara	Milpitas Unified	Rancho Milpitas Middle
Santa Clara	Santa Clara County Office of Education	University Preparatory Academy Charter
Stanislaus	Sylvan Union Elementary	Daniel J. Savage Middle
Yuba	Marysville Joint Unified	Marysville Charter Academy for the Arts

# # # #

Tony Thurmond — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5602, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100

Last Reviewed: Thursday, February 29, 2024

Trending in News Releases

Recently Posted in News Releases

SPI Launches Aid for Wildfire-Affected Schools (added 08-Jan-2025)
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond launches fundraising campaign to support schools affected by wildfires; California Department of Education provides resources in response to school closures.
Signing of the Social Security Fairness Act (added 06-Jan-2025)
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond celebrates landmark victory to establish Social Security Fairness Act for educators and public servants.
Approved Statewide List of Reading Screeners (added 17-Dec-2024)
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond and California Department of Education announce approved statewide list of screeners for reading difficulties, accelerating efforts to support all students to read by third grade.
SPI Supports SB 48 to Keep ICE Off School Campuses (added 17-Dec-2024)
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond sponsors Senate Bill 48 to keep Immigration and Customs Enforcement off of school campuses, protecting school attendance and funding amid deportation threats.
SPI Leads Effort to Protect U.S. Education Dept. (added 04-Dec-2024)
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond meets with members of Congress, leading effort across states to protect the United States Department of Education.

2025 CA U.S. Senate Youth Program Representatives (added 04-Dec-2024)
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond announces California high school student representatives for the 2025 United States Senate Youth Program.