SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today announced the selection of 35 public schools as California nominees to the 2007 No Child Left Behind (NCLB)-Blue Ribbon Schools Program. For the list of the schools, please visit 2007 Award Winning Schools - Blue Ribbon Schools.

"I nominated these schools for this national distinction because they have students across all demographic categories who made impressive gains or scored at the top tier on California's standards-based tests," said O'Connell. "Everyone involved in these students' lives deserves credit for this honor. I applaud each of these nominated schools for implementing a successful combination of rigor, relevance, and relationships that is connecting with students and helping them succeed."

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.

Schools must fit one of the two following categories. The schools' student body must be comprised of 40 percent or more disadvantaged students whose level of proficiency places the school at the 60th percentile in English-language arts and mathematics, in the highest grade tested when compared to other schools in the state. For all other schools, the school must show a student proficiency level that places the school at the 90th percentile in English-language arts and mathematics in the highest grade tested when compared to other schools in the state.

All nominees, which are 2006 California Distinguished Schools, met the federal 2005 and 2006 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and the Academic Performance Index (API) schoolwide and subgroup growth targets. The schools that showed the most schoolwide growth in each of the two categories described above were selected as nominees. 

Nominated schools will submit an application next February to the U.S. Department of Education. The weight of the review criteria will rest overwhelmingly on growth and achievement in English-language arts and mathematics over three years, including significant subgroups. The schools will also need to meet 2007 AYP and API schoolwide and subgroup targets next fall. Those that meet these final targets will be honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., in the fall of 2007.  

Each state is designated a number of schools it can nominate. California, with more than six million students and more than 9,300 public schools, is entitled to nominate 35 schools. Because there is no limit to the number of nominees that can be selected under the program, it is possible for all 35 nominees to be named Blue Ribbon schools. 

For more information on the NCLB-Blue Ribbon Schools Program, visit the U.S. Department of Education's Web site at No Child Left Behind-Blue Ribbon Schools Program [http://www.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/index.html] (Outside Source).