Schools and School Districts Recognized for Outstanding Professional Development

US Education Department Press Releases

Archived: Schools and School Districts Recognized for Outstanding Professional Development A r c h i v e dI n f o r m a t i o n

FOR RELEASE August 27, 1999

Contact: John Emekli or Melinda Malico (202) 401-3026

SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL DISTRICTS RECOGNIZED FOR OUTSTANDING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley today named three schools and four school districts as winners of the U.S. Department of Education's National Awards Program for Model Professional Development for their efforts to improve teachers' knowledge and skills and raise student achievement.

Award recipients are Sprayberry High School in Marietta, Ga.; Spring Woods Senior High School in Houston and Carroll Independent School District in Southlake, both in Texas; Wherry Elementary School in Albuquerque, N.M.; Olathe District Schools (USD233) in Olathe, Kan.; Edmonds School District in Lynwood, Wash.; and Norman Public Schools in Norman, Okla.

"These outstanding honorees are equipping teachers with the skills and expertise needed so that all of today's youth will achieve educational excellence," Riley said. "Teachers tell us they need more tools to help them meet the challenges of today's modern classrooms. These award winners are models for what can be done nationwide to give teachers the best possible learning opportunities."

Established in 1996, the National Awards Program recognizes comprehensive efforts that improve teacher effectiveness and student achievement and are consistent with a set of principles for professional development that are based on the best available research and exemplary practice. These professional development programs can serve as models for schools and districts as they design strategies to improve teachers' skills and knowledge of subject matter and as they demonstrate to their communities that investing in professional development pays off in significant improvements in student achievement.

"We must do more to professionalize teaching," Riley said. "As we ask more and more of today's teachers we must provide the necessary supports to enable them to teach to high standards. High quality professional development is one critical component to meeting this challenge."

Eligibility for the awards program is open to public and private schools and districts. The department's regional laboratories coordinated a rigorous review process that included a first round of evaluation by a non-federal panel of experts, comprehensive site visits of the most promising applicants, and final review by a blue ribbon panel. The panel made recommendations to Riley, who selected the final honorees. This year's awardees will be honored by Riley at the Improving America's Schools Conference in Tampa, Fla. in October 1999.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Following are summary descriptions of the honorees.

Sprayberry High School, Marietta, Georgia

Sprayberry is a suburban high school outside of Atlanta that opened in 1952 to serve a principally rural community; however, the school population is now drawn from more middle class neighborhoods. The past six years have seen a sizeable influx of ethnically diverse families, many of whom speak English as a second language.

Over the past seven years Sprayberry High School has been transformed from an average school to a school of excellence. The basic vehicle for change at Sprayberry has been the adoption of site-based management that made teachers and the administration equal partners in school improvement. Sprayberry High School's teachers are now empowered to assume leadership roles in designing their own professional development. Sprayberry set goals and created a staff development plan by: 1) disaggregating data to identify areas of need; 2) investigating current educational studies to select research-based strategies for improving instruction; 3) designing staff development programs to train teachers in best practices for improving student performance, and; 4) conducting on-going reviews of progress.

Consistent improvement in the SAT and Georgia High School Exit Exam scores reflect the success of Sprayberry's staff development program. In seven years the SAT composite score has grown from 1004 to 1025, well above the national average. The Exit Exam has seen consistent gains in four out of five areas, despite changing demographics. The combination of focus on teaching to improve critical thinking skills and the infusion of technology into both instruction and student-centered activities has led to across-the-board gains for all achievement levels and ethnic groups.

Contact Information:

Sprayberry High School Lorrie Richards, Assistant Principal 2525 Sandy Plains Road Marietta, Georgia 30062 (770) 509-6111 (770) 509-6114 (fax) richardl@mail.sprayberry.high.cobb.k12.ga.us