Holmes Middle School in Northridge lauded as a model of achievement

NORTHRIDGE - State and local educators on Tuesday lauded Holmes Middle School as an example of everything that is being done right at public schools in California.

Already designated a California Distinguished School, Holmes was hand-picked by state schools chief Jack O'Connell and Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Ramon Cortines as the site for their announcement of results for the California Standardized Testing and Reporting program.

Both Cortines and O'Connell celebrated the school's test scores - up 5 percent in English and 10 percent in math last year.

Perhaps a bigger reason was the Northridge school's success ensuring that test scores of black and Latino students matched those of their white and Asian peers.

Holmes Principal Gregory J. Vallone said his school's recipe for success was simple: "When you understand all the tools you have available to you and you utilize them, you can educate every child."

Since 2003, Holmes has more than doubled the test scores of its Latino students in English and math. Now, 55 percent of Latino students were considered proficient or advanced in English and 56 percent in math, well above the state averages for all students and for Latinos.

The same trend can be found among African-American students at Holmes - 65 percent were proficient in English and 64 percent were proficient in math.

The use of periodic assessments to figure out which students needed the most help was 

touted as one reason that Holmes was so successful at addressing the achievement gap.

A program coined "Just In Time Instruction" pulled out students from their elective classes to give them extra coaching in English and math.

Sandy Sherman, an English teacher at Holmes for the last 16 years and union chair at the campus, acknowledged the innovative program could have been jeopardized when the teacher's union asked members to boycott periodic assessments, to protest the layoff of thousands of teachers.

But Sherman credited hard-working teachers - who collected their own data to not violate the boycott - for the school's academic gains.

"Even when we were asked to boycott staff meetings, teachers were meeting on their own to discuss their students," Sherman said.

"You have a team of teachers here who are not afraid to work hard, and go above and beyond for their students."

As a mother and teacher at Holmes, Lauren Blackmon said parent involvement at the school also creates a sense of teamwork that helps students succeed.

"If you want to close the achievement gap, work on parent participation," Blackmon said.

"Why do you think charters are so successful?" she asked. "Parents are signing contracts and agreeing to certain expectations. When you get buy-in like that you are going to have success.

"Well if you build that culture, that climate, at a traditional school you can also have success."