An unprecedented 32 schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District were recognized as 2006 California Distinguished Schools on Tuesday, almost triple the district's record number in 2004.
Twenty-five are Title I schools, which receive federal assistance and enroll students living below poverty levels.
"To have 32 Distinguished Schools in this district is a real milestone," Los Angeles Schools Supt. Roy Romer said at a news conference. "This is just another sign of the increasing excellence of this district. We're on the way up."
State Supt. of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell announced that 377 public elementary schools from 190 districts had earned the distinction, the largest number of elementary school awardees in the 21-year history of the California School Recognition Program.
"These schools are the best of the best," O'Connell said. "They share a vision of excellence and they have brought that vision to life."
About 5% of California's public schools are selected each year from a pool of campuses that apply for the distinction. Applications have risen from 650 for the 2000 awards to 997 for those in 2006.
The program alternates each year in recognizing elementary and secondary schools. Honorees keep the title for four years. Schools seek the award for the honor; no additional funding is involved.
Last year, six L.A. Unified middle and high schools won the award. In 2004, the district had 12 distinguished elementary schools.
When Romer became superintendent six years ago, he urged the district to revamp elementary instruction, focusing on reading and math.
Test scores have risen on those campuses, but secondary schools have not made the same gains.
L.A. Unified spokeswoman Stephanie Brady said the district did not push elementary schools to apply for Distinguished School recognition, but left the decision up to each campus.
Though exact numbers were unavailable, program officials said that based on the increased number of applications generally and the high number of L.A. Unified schools that were honored, it seemed likely that more Los Angeles schools applied than in the past.
To qualify as a Distinguished School, campuses must meet certain test score requirements based on their Academic Performance Index -- a score issued to all California public schools that is based on standardized test scores.
