Empire Elementary revels in meeting federal standards

Although returning to work after months of vacation can be overwhelming, Principal Evelyn Allred said her staff is celebrating.

"The teachers are coming back, and they're all jazzed," she said Thursday. "We're starting on a very high note. It's a very happy atmosphere."

Empire Elementary School, which serves a high percentage of the community's students coming from low-income and non-English speaking families, has rarely met federal standards of No Child Left Behind since the program was implemented in 2000.

The school met requirements three years ago for the first time, but fell short the following year by a half a point.

However, the staff recently found out the school made adequate yearly progress last year by a large margin.

"It's exciting," Allred said. "We really exceeded the requirements, which sets us up in a good position for next year."

Allred credited the work of her staff - from aides to custodians to the lunchroom staff, teachers and even parents - for the success.

"We really focused in on the students' needs," she said. "We targeted in on that and stuck with it. Where they needed additional help, we were ready to step in."

She said several programs helped as well, such as the onsite preschool, an after-school program giving additional homework help and a before-school program aimed at helping students learn English more quickly.

At the school, 76 percent of the population is Hispanic and 68 percent speak English as a second language.

Allred said all instruction is in English, with emphasis placed on language acquisition skills.

"Everything they do to prove they can learn is in English," she said. "All achievement tests are in English. It's hard to answer the question correctly when you don't understand the question, even if you know the answer. They're not stupid. They just have to learn the language."

Fourth-grade teacher Rena Huntington said the test scores are finally validating what she's known all along.

"As a staff we already knew it, but when the public hears it, that feels good. While the scores were saying failing, failing, failing, these students were making huge progress every year," she said. "If we were measuring by growth, Empire would be No. 1."

Dawn Wille, second-grade teacher, said her she measures her students' success on individual achievement, not on the results of a standardized test.

"We tell them all the time how smart they are," she said. "They have two languages."

On last year's test, 80 percent of the students passed the math portion, while 62 percent tested proficient in English language arts.

"It's just proof that every child is capable of learning," Huntington said. "Any child that walks into this building is going to be taught. It doesn't matter where they came from, what language they speak or what color their skin is."