Two Irvine Schools Cited for Excellence by Federal Agency

Two Irvine high schools--University and Woodbridge--were named winners Wednesday in the U.S. Department of Education’s annual search for outstanding schools.

Moreover, although 269 other junior high, middle and high schools throughout the nation were also named winners, the Irvine Unified School District--and Orange County--posted the only double-win combination.

“We are absolutely ecstatic,” Helen Cameron, Irvine school board president, said. “We are particularly pleased because having two winners is a wonderful honor.”

Venado Middle School in Irvine was a winner several years ago, Cameron said.

The two Irvine high schools were among 670 campuses nominated by state departments of education in all 50 states. Four states came up empty: North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina and West Virginia.

The schools were judged by a panel of 71 reviewers, only a third of them educators, on a wide range of attributes, such as the school’s atmosphere, attendance rates for students and faculty, student test scores, dropout rates and whether it is drug free. Federal officials also check the school’s civil rights record.

The winning school principals and superintendents will be invited to come to Washington at their own expense this fall for a ceremony at which Education Secretary William J. Bennett will bestow on each a “flag of excellence.”

Bennett said: “Excellent schools like these renew our faith in American education. They have worked extraordinarily hard, and, as a result, they have much to show for it.”

Cameron said there will be a separate awards ceremony in Los Angeles next month.

She said district officials were worried that one of the two high schools would be eliminated because they are from the same district. “It’s difficult for two to go forward” in the selection process, Cameron said.

“I heard about it around lunch time. . . . The superintendent called all of the board members to let us know individually,” Cameron added. “We’re so happy. . . . The parent expectations are extremely high here, but in terms of funding we are an average school district. Having two winners reinforces our ability to deliver excellent programs under difficult financial conditions.”

‘Excellent Raw Material’

Cameron said: “There are several components in making an excellent school: Parents provide excellent raw material in the students they send us, and we have excellent, quality staff dedicated to providing challenging material, up to the level of the students. We have a large number of students taking advanced-level classes.”

Woodbridge High School Principal Greg Cops said his students were “excited and feeling a sense of pride” after he announced his school’s selection Wednesday afternoon over the campus public address system.

“Everyone likes to be selected or called out (for honors),” Cops said.

The principal, who worked at University High School before Woodbridge opened in 1980, said both campuses are “situated in a privileged area, in that the population we serve has people who value education and want their kids to do well in school . . . and probably make personal sacrifices to make sure that they do.”

Each school is allowed to set its own direction, which encourages parents and teachers to develop high standards and “spend extra time with the kids,” Cops added.

Woodbridge has about 1,450 students, and University has about 2,100, Cops said.

University High School Principal Robert Bruce could not be reached for comment late Wednesday.

The 5-year-old national school recognition program costs taxpayers $728,000.

Schools that won in the past are barred from competing again for three years. South Carolina--a state Bennett has praised for its wide-ranging school reforms--has had a dozen winners in previous years.

Delegation Size a Factor

Public schools were nominated by state school superintendents, with each state allowed to nominate the number of schools equal to the size of its congressional delegation. In addition, the Council for American Private Education nominated 130 schools.

Principals then filled out detailed packets of information about their schools, and the packets were rated by the review panel. In March, that panel recommended 370 schools in 49 states--North Dakota was passed over--for site visits.

The site visits were conducted in the spring by a separate group of experts, many of them principals of schools honored in the program’s previous four years. The experts visited each school for two days and submitted reports.

The 71-member review panel reconvened in May and recommended the 271 schools named Wednesday.

Past selections have not been without controversy. The National Education Assn. raised questions about the selection criteria in 1985 after a Des Moines, Wash., teacher expressed surprise that her school had been singled out.

Asked why four states had no winners, Jane Glickman, a spokeswoman for the Department of Education, said simply: “The reviewers and site visitors did not think the schools warranted recognition.”

The schools nominated in those four states were good, she said, but not good enough to make the final cut.

Attributes and Indicators

The schools are rated on what the federal agency calls “14 attributes of successful schools and seven indicators of accomplishment.”

The 14 attributes are clear academic goals; high expectations for students; order, discipline and freedom from drug use; rewards and incentives for students; regular monitoring of student progress; development of character and values; teacher input and staff development; rewards and incentives for teachers; concentration on academics; positive climate; administrative leadership; well-articulated curriculum; evaluation for instructional improvement, and community support.

The seven indicators are: student scores on achievement tests; student scores on minimum competency tests; student success in high school or postsecondary education; attendance rates for both students and teachers, and student suspensions and exclusions; dropout rates; awards for outstanding programs and teaching; student awards in academic or vocational competitions.