San Ramon Valley Unified School District had more schools selected in April as Distinguished Schools than any other district in California, an all-time record for SRVUSD.
All of the middle schools in Danville and Alamo were named as Distinguished Schools.
“It reinforces that learning is happening, and students are achieving,” said Terry Koehne, district Community Relations Coordinator. “Schools are making kids successful.”
The prestigious award, which is given by the Department of Education’s California School Recognition Program, is one of the most sought after in the state, said Koehne. Started in 1985, it is meant to celebrate a school’s entire education program. Schools apply voluntarily for the award and it alternates each year between secondary and elementary schools.
“There’s nothing monetary attached to it. It’s a completely intangible award,” said Koehne. “The real perk comes from being able to call yourself a Distinguished School.”
The application process is long and arduous. The 30-page application asks schools to address seven different themes such as academic excellence, and how it engages the school community. Within each theme, schools must answer specific questions. Schools spent weeks preparing their applications.
At Stone Valley Middle School, eighth-grade teacher Jennifer Billeci was asked to write the school’s application for the award.
“I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into,” Billeci said. Teachers, administrators and parents all contributed to the application. Billeci learned what everyone in the school was working on and was impressed by her colleagues.
“In the end, it was definitely a collaborative effort,” Billeci said. Stone Valley’s application was received and accepted. A visitation team, consisting of local educators from other school districts, came to Stone Valley to do an onsite evaluation. They talked with students, district employees and parents.
“The people who are assessing you know what an effective school should and could look like,” said Koehne.
Principal Sandy Budde at Charlotte Wood Middle School wrote about “Operation Cinderella” in its application. Last summer, Budde’s son, Lt. Ben Budde, who was serving in Iraq, told her that many children in Iraq lacked shoes. Budde mentioned this to teacher Jo Loecher, and with the students they started “Operation Cinderella.” They ultimately raised more than 1,000 pairs of flip-flops.
Both Budde and Koehne praise the district’s teachers.
“The teachers are the heroes. They are the biggest reason why schools would be distinguished,” said Koehne.
“The student were asked what they liked most about Charlotte Wood and all of them said the teachers. It’s pretty incredible that a 12-year-old would choose teachers over pizza,” said Budde.
While some strong schools opt not to apply, Koehne, Budde and Billeci agreed that the award is important to the community.
“It bolsters your reputation. You can provide that tagline. It also brings peace of mind,” said Koehne.
“I think it’s nice for people in the community to hear good things about their schools. Schools get such bad press in California. It’s good to show them that some schools are working,” said Billeci.
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