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Alabama department to invite top and most‑improved schools for legislative recognition and awards
Summary
Officials described the Legislative School Performance Recognition Program, said $250,000 will be divided among recognized schools, and said checks will be presented at the department's February meeting; the program honors top‑25 schools and most‑improved schools defined in state law.
Department staff told the board that the Legislative School Performance Recognition Program — created in state law as part of the school report‑card framework — will bring schools to Montgomery next month for recognition and financial awards.
"The total is $250,000, so it's divided up," a department official said, and staff said awards will be presented at the department's February meeting so recipients can receive checks in person.
Officials said the program recognizes two categories. Schools can qualify by being ranked in the top 25 percent on the department’s ranking system or by improving their overall ranking by at least one letter grade from the prior year; both paths are written into state law, staff said. The department explained it developed a practical ranking system to identify the top‑25 schools because the statute does not prescribe a specific methodology.
Staff emphasized that the program also highlights improvement. “We really wanna focus on improvement,” a department official said, noting that some schools showing marked growth may never be in the top 25 percent but deserve recognition for the progress they made.
The department displayed lists of schools to be invited and said the top‑25 list is alphabetized rather than ordered by score. Officials also named several most‑improved schools during the presentation and said representatives from accounting had arranged for checks to be ready at the February meeting.
Board members asked timing questions and were told the recognitions will be part of next month’s meetings; staff said the program will invite legislators to attend on the legislative recognition day.
Marcus Vandiver, a department staff member recognized during the presentation, was credited with work to ensure the right schools were identified and the awards were properly processed.
