Title I Distinguished Schools and Districts Awarded

 State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge officially named 868 Georgia Title I Distinguished Schools and four Title I Distinguished Districts at today's State Board of Education meeting.

"These schools have shown that high expectations, hard work and collaboration do improve student achievement," Superintendent Barge said. "I'm so pleased to recognize the educators, students and parents in these schools and school districts."

Title I schools have a significant population of students who are economically disadvantaged. These schools receive federal money to assist with the education of their students. There are two National Title I Distinguished Schools among the total 868 Georgia Title I Distinguished Schools. Title I Distinguished Schools have made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) at least three years in a row.

"These 868 schools could make excuses, but they don't," Superintendent Barge said. "The teachers and students are focused and the consistent results prove it."

Title I Distinguished Schools that have made AYP for three consecutive years are awarded a certificate, while those who have made AYP four or more years receive a monetary award, paid for out of federal funds.

TITLE I DISTINGUISHED DISTRICTS
There are also four Title I Distinguished Districts, which is given to school systems in four different size categories -- Large District, Medium District, Small District and Very Small District. The awarded districts have closed the achievement gap the most between economically disadvantaged students and students who are not economically disadvantaged in each category. The results of the reading, English language arts and mathematics portions of the Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) and the Georgia High School Graduation Test (GHSGT) are used to determine achievement.

The 2010-2011 Title I Distinguished Districts are:
- Large District: Clarke County
- Medium: Peach County
- Small District: Dublin City
- Very Small District: Glascock County

The winning districts each received $50,000 from federal funds.

NATIONAL TITLE I DISTINGUISHED SCHOOLS
The National Title I Distinguished Schools program recognizes two schools that receive Title I funding. One school is recognized for closing the achievement gap between economically disadvantaged students and students that are not economically disadvantaged. The other school is recognized for exceeding the benchmarks required to make AYP. The CRCT and GHSGT results in reading, English language arts and mathematics are used to determine the winning schools.

The two National Title I Distinguished Schools are:
- Closing the Gap: Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary - Clayton County
- Meets and Exceeds Performance: Fourth District Elementary - Appling County

Each school received $15,000 in addition to their FY11 Title I Distinguished Schools allocation.


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