Memorandum from Mary Kay Murphy
Mary Kay Murphy, Ph.D. District 3  School Board Member marykaymurphy@aol.com

April 5, 2011

Distinguished Title I Schools

District III in Gwinnett County Public Schools received good news from the Georgia Department of Education as six schools received “Distinguished Title I School” designation.

Thirty-three GCPS schools earned “Distinguished Title I” status in 2010.   Six of these schools are in the Norcross and the Duluth Clusters.   The honor highlights these schools for their work in meeting and exceeding the State of Georgia ’s academic standards.

Title I is a designation of the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act.   It is also a designation of the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act.   Title I schools receive federal funds to better serve students, including a higher percentage of students receiving free or reduced lunch.  

Title I Distinguished Schools achieve this distinction for making Adequate Yearly Progress for three or more consecutive years.   Along with the title, most of the schools receive a monetary award to continue providing services to their students.  

Each year, the Georgia Department of Education recognizes Title I schools that excel in meeting achievement standards.   This recognition took place at the February 2011 meeting of the Gwinnett Board of Education.

Why has Gwinnett County had such success with student academic achievement at Title I schools?

Dale Robbins, Associate Superintendent for Teaching and Learning Support for GCPS, reports   “The success of Gwinnett’s Title I schools is built on the belief that all students can achieve at high levels if challenged through high expectations for student learning, access to rigorous grade level curriculum, and frequent assessment to measure progress toward the standard.”

Many factors contribute to Gwinnett’s impressive list of Title I schools.   These include the following:

·                     Extended day learning programs;

·                     Faculty and staff development programs;

·                     Collaboration on effective use of data to improve student achievement;

·                     Teaching strategies to engage students in academic programs.

Distinguished Title I schools that have achieved Adequate Yearly Progress for eight years include the following:

·                     Norcross Elementary                 Norcross Cluster           Principal Dr. Dora Hill

·                     Peachtree Elementary                Norcross Cluster           Principal Dr. Beverly Smith

Distinguished Title I schools achieving Adequate Yearly Progress for six years include:

·                     Beaver Ridge Elementary           Norcross Cluster           Principal Jose DeJesus

·                     Chesney Elementary                  Duluth Cluster                Principal Carlotta Rozzi

Distinguished Title I schools achieving Adequate Yearly Progress for four years include:

·                     Stripling Elementary                   Norcross Cluster          Principal Priscilla McHam

·                     Summerour Middle                    Norcross Cluster          Principal Dorothy Jarrett

·                     Norcross High School               Norcross Cluster            Principal Jonathan Patterson

Teachers serving in Title I schools in Gwinnett County have developed expertise in making sure that all students in Title I schools are receiving a quality education.  

They believe that all children can learn and make sure to provide academic instruction to advance student success at or above grade level for all students in Title I schools.

  As District III school board member, I celebrate the achievements of the six Distinguished Title I schools in the Norcross and Duluth Clusters.   I express deep appreciation to the principals, teachers, and support staff of these outstanding schools for diligence in pursuit of the GCPS mission—teaching and learning, with an emphasis on learning.

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