Four Region 12 Schools Receive State Recognition
Belton, La Vega, Meridian and Gholson ISDs Earn Distinguished Performance Honor

WACO, TEXAS—Several Central Texas schools deserve a round of applause!  The Texas Education Agency (TEA) recently granted the 2007-2008 Title I Distinguished School Performance and Distinguished School Progress honors to 171 Texas campuses including four located in the Region 12 area.

Region 12 schools earning the Distinguished Performance honor include Leon Heights Elementary – Belton ISD; La Vega Elementary – La Vega ISD; and Meridian Elementary – Meridian ISD.  Gholson Elementary – Gholson ISD earned the Distinguished Progress honor. Education Service Center (ESC) Region 12 will present each of the schools with a certificate of achievement on behalf of the Texas Education Agency (TEA).  The presentations will be made at the districts’ upcoming school board meetings or the schools’ faculty meetings. Distinguished Performance schools are recognized as consistently providing educational excellence, while Distinguished Progress schools are recognized for having made significant strides in reaching educational excellence.     

Barbara Agee, Title I Specialist for ESC Region 12, stated

“It is a great feat to maintain the very high standards that are required to receive this honor.  Campuses which serve high percentages of low socio-economic students (at least 40%) must have met Adequate Yearly Progress for the past two years and received the state’s highest rating of Exemplary in 2007. With standards of progress increasing at both the federal and state level each year, these districts and campuses are to be commended for this accomplishment. These distinguished schools serve as a role model for all of Region 12 schools.”

Agee said the schools have been invited to share their strategies of success with other educators by completing a “School Profile” which will be publicized via the ESC Region 12 Title I webpage.  Campus representatives have also been invited to serve on a Title I School Support Team in the role of advisor where upon request, they will share information with other schools on ways to improve their Title I services.   

Title I is the largest of the federally funded elementary and secondary education programs and federal law requires each state to identify those Title I schools that are meeting or exceeding the state’s standards.  A complete list of the Title I Distinguished Schools in Texas is available at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/nclb/titleia/DSList07-08.pdf (PDF) .

For more information, please contact Barbara Agee at 254/297-1238 or bagee@esc12.net.

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