Program Categories
1. Curriculum: Programs may be submitted in any of the following curricular areas:
- Career Technical Education
- English/Language Arts/Reading
- History/Social Science
- Mathematics
- Science
- Visual and Performing Arts
- Other Content Areas
2. English Language Acquisition: Includes programs which effectively assist students in transitioning from their primary language to English.
3. Instruction: Includes models that utilize interdisciplinary teaching, thematic instruction, learning styles/multiple intelligences, technology and/or other innovative or exemplary instructional strategies and integrated programs.
4. Early Childhood Education: Includes all programs that are developmentally appropriate for pre-kindergarten aged children, collaborate with cities/counties for educationally relevant child care and Head Start programs.
5. Professional Development and Teachers Recruitment/Retention: Includes all professional development programs for staff, including teachers, administrators and classified personnel. This includes beginning teacher support and assessment programs, as well as intern and credentialing programs. Recruitment programs include those that have proven success in retaining teachers in the district and obtain successful strategies to attract and preserve teachers in critical shortage areas.
6. Accountability/Assessment: Includes models/techniques for assessing student achievement and/or program effectiveness on a districtwide basis and for ensuring district accountability.
7. Bridging the Achievement Gap: This category addresses efforts to ensure that the academic achievement of economically disadvantaged students and students of color are moving toward the highest-performing students in the school or district. Such efforts include intervention strategies, meaningful disaggregation of student performance data, professional development, etc.
8. Technology: Includes the use of technology as an instructional tool which engages students in the curriculum, helps equip them for an increasingly technological society and job market and provides greater access to educational services.
9. Invigorating High Schools: Includes programs to enhance student learning and engagement at the high school level, such as career connections; enriched curriculum; enhanced student engagement efforts; and innovative use of schedules and school calendars.
10. Partnerships and Collabratives*: Includes collaborations between school districts, county offices of education, cities and counties to strengthen instructional supports for students or maximize resources and community support. Also includes partnerships with schools and businesses or community-based organizations.
11. Student Services: Includes, but is not limited to, on campus student service centers, parent education programs, counseling and intervention programs, peer assistance and nutrition programs.
12. School Safety: Includes programs that effectively prevent or reduce school violence by promoting a positive school climate, teaching students to resolve conflicts and/or other prevention or intervention strategies.
13. Parental/Community Involvement: Includes programs which encourage or facilitate parental involvement in their child’s education, including outreach to diverse parent communities.
14. County Offices of Education: Includes county services to school districts, regional consortia and alternative education programs.
15. Special Education†: Includes programs designed to meet the needs of special education students, including children from birth to age 5.
16. Focus on Middle Grades: Includes programs to meet the unique needs of middle school students, including student engagement in school; school configurations; professional development; relevant curriculum; articulation with grade school and high school; and academic/social support systems.
*The Cities, Counties and Schools Partnership is holding its 2008 California Community Partnership Award program this year in conjunction with the CSBA Golden Bell Awards. Entries in the Partnerships and Collaboratives category of the Golden Bell program that feature collaboration with other local government agencies are eligible.
Community Partnership Award winners will be selected from among the Golden Bell winners in this category and honored with this additional award from the CCS Partnership at the Golden Bell Awards Luncheon in December.
The CCS Partnership is sponsored by CSBA, the League of California
Cities and the California State Association of Counties. For more information regarding the California Community Partnership Awards, visit the CCS Partnership Web site at www.ccspartnership.org or call 916.323.6011.
†Programs submitted in this category will also be considered for a California Special Education Commission GOAL award. The California Advisory Commission on Special Education created the Grazer Outstanding Achievement Learning (GOAL), which is one of many activities designed to celebrate special education youth of all age groups.