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Riverside County Superintendent of Schools delivers annual education update
 Dr. David Long, Riverside County Superintendent of Schools, celebrated the academic achievement of Riverside County schools March 7 in his annual “Education Briefing.” (Charts and graphs available in PDF, 15MB. QuickTime video available).
The event at the Riverside County Office of Education was attended by more than 175 schoolteachers, principals, students, and administrators from districts around the county. In addition, local legislative leaders and community members were on hand to hear how Riverside County schools continue to grow in enrollment and test scores are also on the rise.
 There were 307,055 students in the county eight years ago when he took office and 404,331 now, a 31 percent increase, Long said. Hispanic students were 44 percent in 1999, up to 54 percent in 2007, African Americans 7 percent up to 8 percent, and Anglos 43 percent compared to 31 percent. The county grows by 44 students each day, and could fill 14 new schools a year.
Riverside County’s population passed the 2 million mark in 2006, up from 1.5 million in 1999. While Riverside County continues to be one of the fastest growing large counties in the state (and country), 80 percent of the other counties in the state are experiencing declining or flat enrollments. Riverside County is now presenting different challenges for legislators than other declining counties, Long said.
Long highlighted schools and districts that have shown significant gains measured by the Academic Performance Index, including top five scoring districts last year: Temecula Valley Unified (820), Murrieta Valley Unified (811), Menifee Union (766), Corona-Norco Unified (754), and Riverside Unified (729) school districts.
Based on improvement instead of top scores on the API, the top five districts in API gains from 2005-2006 were Val Verde Unified (+24), Lake Elsinore Unified (+22), Hemet Unified (+20), Desert Sands Unified (+19), and Perris Union (18).
Riverside County improved by a total of 122 points over seven years, compared to 106 points in the state. In the subgroups of the API, scores for African-American, Hispanic and socially disadvantaged students rose faster than the state and countywide averages for all students, which Long said meant that Riverside County educators are doing a good job of closing the “achievement gap.”
Long introduced and recognized:
State Golden Bell winners Santiago High School, Corona-Norco Unified School District, and Beaumont High School, Beaumont Unified School District.
National Blue Ribbon School, Victoriano Elementary School, Val Verde Unified School District.
National Terrel H. Bell Award for School Leadership, Charles Holland, Principal, Victoriano Elementary School, Val Verde Unified School District.
National American Star of Teaching Award, Aimee Garcia, Victoriano Elementary School, Val Verde Unified School District.
State Distinguished Schools nominees, James Day Middle School, Temecula Valley Unified School District; Palm Desert Middle School, Desert Sands Unified School District; Elsinore High School, Lake Elsinore Unified School District; Temescal Canyon High School, Lake Elsinore Unified School District.
The Golden Broncos Booster Club, Vista Murrieta High School, Murrieta Valley Unified School District.
All-County Academic Team Captains Nicolas Altemose, Chaparral High School, Temecula Valley Unified School District, and Antony Jan, Beaumont High School, Beaumont Unified School District (both scoring perfect 2400 scores on their college SAT’s).
RIMS Science Fair champion, State Science Fair Silver Medalist Shay Edwards, Norco High School, Corona-Norco Unified School District.
“Friend of the Year,” California Head Start Association, Warren Wilson, Corona, 86-year-old volunteer at Home Gardens, Garretson, Jefferson, and RCC Norco Head Start sites.
Richard Leivas, who served in Korea 1950-1955, and is one of 50 veterans who will be awarded high school diplomas on May 16 as part of a new Operation Recognition Program.
For information contact:
Rick Peoples,
Public Information Officer
Telephone: (951) 826-6642
Fax: (951) 826-6199
rpeoples@rcoe.us
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