SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO : Innovative Principal Wins Service Award

These have not been happy times for public schools. State revenue cutbacks in recent years have bit deeply into programs and morale at many school districts across the state.

San Juan Elementary School has taken the financial hits along with the rest of them. But instead of complaining, Principal Michael Hoy took action. His fund-raising efforts and innovative programs were rewarded by a grateful community last week with the 1993 John Williams Public Service Award.

Hoy was honored by the City Council, which lauded his accomplishments on behalf of San Juan Elementary School over the past four years. His accomplishments included:

* Successfully winning $160,000 in grant funds from the state.

* Building a relationship with Apple Computer, which resulted in a $20,000 grant to purchase computer equipment for students.

* Helping establish the San Juan Task Force, a community service organization that has worked to raise money and provide volunteers for the Capistrano Unified School District. Hoy is currently the group’s president.

* Bringing in a dozen bilingual teachers to San Juan Elementary, which is about 75% Latino. Hoy, who has lived in Central America, speaks Spanish.

San Juan Elementary School was also honored by Redbook Magazine last month. The publication named the school as one of the top 177 elementary schools in the country.

Mike Darnold, president of the San Juan Capistrano Chamber of Commerce and a San Juan Task Force member, remembered a day recently when he was contacted by a group of visitors from India, including a teacher from that country.

“I called up Mike, and he said, ‘Please bring them over right away,’ ” Darnold said. “He takes them from class to class unannounced. The kids welcomed them into the classroom, got out the atlas and asked them about their country.

“(Hoy) is an innovative, open-minded educator who loves people, and it’s very, very contagious,” Darnold said.