The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and the State Board of Education (SBE) have announced the 258 schools statewide that will receive Washington Achievement Awards. Of those 258 schools, 25 are in Lake Washington School District (LWSD), the fourth largest district in the state. More schools in LWSD earned awards than any other district including the three districts that serve more pupils than LWSD. The 25 LWSD schools will receive a total of 47 recognitions, including 17 awards for overall excellence. All award-winning schools will be honored during a ceremony on May 10 at Union Gap School in Union Gap, Wash.

“These recognitions show that we are committed to maintaining our high academic standards,” said Dr. Traci Pierce, superintendent. “As a fast-growing school district, we add hundreds of students to our district each year. Even with this growth, our teachers and principals work hard to make sure that every student who comes to us is learning. These recognitions show that we continue to have strong academic success.”

The awards use the State Board of Education Revised Achievement Index and are based on statewide assessment data for the three previous years. The Achievement Index measures school performance, emphasizing improvement and recognition. Schools cannot be listed as Priority or Focus and must have at least 95 percent participation on state tests to qualify for recognition. Schools are recognized as top performers in six categories: Overall Excellence, High Progress, Reading Growth, Math Growth, five-year graduation rate and English Language Acquisition. Some schools are honored in more than one of these categories.

Seventeen LWSD schools will be recognized for overall excellence, including four in Kirkland: Discovery Community School, Juanita Elementary, Muir Elementary and Northstar Middle School.

Four of these schools have been recognized for overall excellence each year since 2011: Juanita Elementary, Mann Elementary, Rockwell Elementary and Rosa Parks Elementary.

Three LWSD schools will be recognized with high progress awards: Muir Elementary, Redmond Elementary and Rose Hill Elementary.

Lake Washington Schools performed well in English Language Arts growth, with 15 schools getting special recognition awards in this category: Alcott Elementary, Blackwell Elementary, Dickinson Elementary, Discovery Community School, Explorer Community School, Franklin Elementary, Juanita Elementary, Muir Elementary, Northstar Middle School, Redmond Elementary, Rockwell Elementary, Rosa Parks Elementary, Sandburg Elementary, Smith Elementary, and Stella Schola Middle School.

Five special recognition awards for math growth will be given to LWSD schools: Discovery Community School, Muir Elementary, Rosa Parks Elementary, Rush Elementary, and Wilder Elementary.

Seven schools will receive special recognition awards for English language acquisition: Bell Elementary, Dickinson Elementary, Franklin Elementary, Keller Elementary, Rockwell Elementary, Rosa Parks Elementary and Rose Hill Middle School.

Schools are selected for awards based on their statewide assessment data for the three previous years. This data is analyzed using the Achievement Index and methodology approved by both OSPI and the SBE. For more information, visit the Washington Achievement Awards section of the OSPI website.