Better than blue ribbon

There are at least two valuable lessons to be learned from Marina

High’s missing out on a statewide honor because of a single point on

a student exam.

The first, and more painful, is that sometimes life deals you a

rotten hand. That certainly is the case in this instance, where what

may be nothing more than a clerical error is keeping the school from

earning its first California Distinguished School Award since 1988.

From what school officials can determine, two students in different

grades had the same identification number on the statewide Academic

Performance Index test, which is a key criteria for the award.

Because of that oversight, both students’ scores ended up in the two

grade levels.

School officials won’t learn if that discrepancy caused the

one-point deficit, however. The state denied Marina High

administrators’ request for a review, saying the same mix-up happened

to other schools and those appeals were too late.

And that is a rotten turn of events, one even more difficult to

bear given initial word in the fall that the school had performed

well enough to earn the award.

The second lesson is the more important. It can be summed up best

by Assistant Principal Kirk Kennedy’s words: “Overall, I think our

student performance for this last year was excellent.”

Kennedy and the rest of staff and, we hope, the student body at

Marina High know they are teaching and learning well. They know they

are making grand leaps on the statewide test. They know they are a

distinguished school, with or without the blue ribbon.

And that kind of self-validation and the pride that accompanies it

will go far beyond any praise from Sacramento. It is a foundation for

better efforts, for parent involvement in the school, for teacher

dedication before and after school.

It might even be the foundation upon which they can win that silly

award next year, if they want.