All six Salem schools and the Division, as a whole, received a pat on the back this week as Gov. Bob McDonnell and the Virginia Board of Education honored Virginia’s elite public schools.
Andrew Lewis Middle School, Salem’s sole middle school with over 900 students in grades 6 through 8, is one of just 110 Virginia public schools to earn the Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence. This prestigious award is the highest honor given in the Board of Education’s incentive program for schools and school divisions known as the VIP – Virginia Index for Performance. This is the second straight year Andrew Lewis has won this honor.
To qualify for this honor the state says a school must – “Meet all state and federal achievement benchmarks for at least two consecutive years and meet Governor McDonnell’s goals for achievement in elementary reading; enrollment in Algebra I by grade 8; enrollment in college-level courses; attainment of advanced diplomas and career and industry certifications…”
The Salem School Division is one of just eight divisions statewide to garner the Board of Education’s Excellence Award. Salem’s four elementary schools – East Salem Elementary, G.W. Carver Elementary, South Salem Elementary and West Salem Elementary – also earned the Board of Education’s Excellence award. In addition, Salem High School was awarded the Board of Education’s Competence to Excellence award.
“Our students, their families, and all of the terrific people who have answered the call to serve Salem’s children deserve this recognition and much more,” says Salem Superintendent, Dr. Alan Seibert. “We are blessed to carry out our core business of teaching and learning in a community that places great value on its young people. When our children thrive, our community thrives, so credit for this recognition is shared with every citizen of Salem.”