Tim Willert
GLENDALE -- Monte Vista and Verdugo Woodlands elementary schools
joined a select group Monday when they were named 2000 Distinguished
Schools by the state department of education.
The schools become the 14th and 15th from the Glendale Unified School
District to be recognized by the state for academic achievemnt and
overall excellence.
Monte Vista and Verdugo Woodlands are among 34 distinguished schools
in Los Angeles County and 233 statewide in what State Superintendent of
Public Education Delaine Eastin called "the most rigorous competition in
the program's history."
"It is with great enthusiasm that I congratulate the educators,
parents and students of this year's 233 distinguished elementary
schools," Eastin said in a prepared statement. "These schools are
committed to a superior standard of education, making them leaders in the
education community."
The department of education received nearly 700 applications for this
year's competition, the largest number in the program's 15-year history.
"Both Monte Vista and Verdugo Woodlands certainly represent the
elementary schools of this district very well," Glendale Unified Supt.
Jim Brown said. "Both schools have strong records of student achievement,
and they are closely connected to the communities they serve."
In all, 12 elementary schools from the Glendale Unified School
District were invited to apply. Five of those schools, Dunsmore, Fremont,
Lincoln, Mountain Avenue and R.D. White received honorable mention
nominations.
"I want to compliment all the schools that were invited to apply,"
Brown said. "That in itself is a very positive statement about the
successfull efforts of those schools over time."
Both schools will be honored by the state May 5 at the Disneyland
Hotel. Also, Crescenta Valley High will be recognized as a national Blue
Ribbon School nominee.
