Jackson Elementary named California Distinguished School; principal outlines student gains and arts programs

Superintendent Jim Shoemake announced at the board meeting that Jackson Elementary has been named a California Distinguished School, praising staff, students and families for the recognition.

The designation matters because Jackson was the only school in the county given that recognition this year, Shoemake said, and the district plans a May 2 celebration at the site.

Principal Michelle Williamson walked trustees through programs and performance data she said contributed to the recognition. She described a range of student activities and supports, from oral-interpretation teams and unified sports to an intervention program that she said produced measurable gains. "We had a 5.3% jump in math and a 4.3% jump in English language arts, coupled with a 96% positive attendance rate," Williamson said. She also told the board the school's suspension rate this year was zero.

Williamson gave grade-by-grade benchmark figures from the district's February pulse point: transitional kindergarten 88% ELA, 98% math; kindergarten 87% ELA, 91% math; first grade 96% ELA, 96% math; second grade 90% ELA, 86% math; third grade 80% ELA, 79% math; fourth grade 81% ELA, 84% math; fifth grade 87% ELA, 91% math. She said those numbers are the school's measure before the third-trimester push to reach benchmark for all students.

The board heard about extracurricular programs at Jackson: an arts studio producing Chihuly-inspired kindergarten work; large musicals and stage productions (the recent cast numbered 76 students); a library reading program in which dozens of students have read over a million words; and family science and community events supported by the PTO. Williamson described a research-based phonics intervention with large gains in students who received 30 minutes of additional instruction three days per week.

Students and coaches from the school's Nature Bowl team presented a short oral commercial about a proposed native-plant garden and described their after-school practice schedule. Director of Special Education Dustin Bailey and parent assistant coach Holly Reininger were identified as adult leaders supporting student activities.

Williamson announced an internal leadership transition: Molly Griffin will take over as the next principal at Jackson. Williamson said she is handing Griffin a set of items and resources and will remain involved during the onboarding period.

Trustees offered congratulations and repeated appreciation for the school's staff and intervention work during the public presentation.

The school presentation and recognition took place during the board's "Celebrating Excellence" portion of the meeting; Williamson and the Jackson staff in attendance were thanked by trustees before the meeting moved on to other agenda items.