| Lake Washington,
Centralia, Hood Canal selected as ‘School Boards of the Year’
Posted November 20, 2006
The school boards of the Lake Washington, Centralia and Hood Canal school districts have been named 2006 Boards of the Year by the Washington State School Directors’ Association (WSSDA). The prestigious awards recognize school boards that have demonstrated outstanding efforts and accomplishments in promoting student achievement.
Members of the three boards were honored Friday during the association’s annual conference in Spokane. The awards, which include a gift of $500 from the Washington State School Boards’ Educational Foundation, are presented to one each from a small, medium and large school district.
Award recipients submitted essays describing what the school board has done to improve student achievement. Essays were judged on several criteria, including the board’s vision and leadership, efforts to work as a team with the district administration, clearly described lessons that will benefit other school boards, and a thoughtful implementation plan.
Lake Washington School Board
The Lake Washington School Board is honored as the School Board of the Year for districts with more than 5,000 students (district enrollment is approximately 23,000). Members of the board are Nancy Bernard, Doug Eglington, Bob Hughes, Jackie Pendergrass and Ravi Shahani. The district superintendent is Don Saul.
The Lake Washington essay notes that it has adopted new governance policies that help the district focus more consistently and effectively on student academic performance. As a result, it says, the district now spends the highest percentage of its operating budget, compared with other districts in the county, on student instruction.
"The new governance policies have focused the entire organization from the top down to continuing improvement of its quality work, providing the basis for the development of a common language, common measures of performance and common direction throughout the district," the essay says.
The essay points out that student academic achievement has improved, particularly in math, where WASL passage rates have climbed from 36 percent to 75 percent in fourth grade, from 32 percent to 70 percent in seventh grade, and from 56 percent to 71 percent in 10th grade.
Other actions cited by the district:
Comprehensive evaluation and analysis of student performance data to guide instructional strategies
Adoption of new science curricula and re-alignment of math instruction to get students into higher-level courses at an earlier age
Continued development of common curricula throughout the district and expansion of Advanced Placement classes
School modernization, supported by a bond measure approved by voters in 1998
Centralia School Board
School Board of the Year for a district with 1,001 to 5,000 students is awarded to the Centralia School Board (district enrollment is approximately 3,500). Members of the board are Ron Brumbaugh, Patty Dolezal, Bob Fuller, Jan Leth and Maree Quade. The district superintendent is Doug Kernutt.
In its essay, the Centralia district says it has emphasized student academic improvement during the past 16 years through the board’s strategic long range plan, a plan that is clearly understood by staff, parents and the community. The board expects continuous improvement and the use of quality educational research as a major component in decision making.
Key actions cited by the district include:
Implementation of a district-wide summer school program for students in kindergarten through 12th grade
Adoption of research-based reading programs, addition of reading facilitators and regular monitoring of teaching process
Review of math, writing and science programs by teacher committees
Restructuring of student promotion/retention policies to assure that students meet required standards to move on to the next level
Emphasis on professional development for administrators and teachers and monitoring of the learning and teaching process
Hood Canal School Board
The Hood Canal School Board is honored as the School Board of the Year for districts with 1,000 or fewer students (Hood Canal is a K-8 district with enrollment of approximately 320 students). Members of the board during are Ed Binder, Sara Endicott, Judy Haesel, Sheryl Kroneman and Victoria Pavel. The district superintendent is Ron Zier.
In the spring of 2005, the Hood Canal leadership team developed a comprehensive plan to improve student performance by setting a number of goals and a timeline for completion. Board members have been actively involved in the improvement process by participating in various committees, visiting classrooms, attending school functions, and providing support and recognition of student and staff accomplishments.
In addition, the board volunteered the district to become a School Improvement Site, which provided funding for an educational audit, a school improvement facilitator, data collection and analysis, and professional development. The board also initiated a tuition-free all-day kindergarten program.
Community involvement has been critical to the success of the improvement process, the essay says. It notes that the board made a concerted effort to bring together five distinct and diverse communities, an effort that eventually won support to replace an aging and deteriorating school.
The district has shown across-the-board improvements in its WASL scores since 2002, with students more than doubling their passage rates in some subjects.
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