Simi Valley Unified School District has received a passing grade on the 2006 Academic Performance Index. The API is part of the 1999 Public Schools Accountability Act and is used to measure the performance of schools throughout California.

As a whole, SVUSD received a score of 800, the performance target for all schools statewide. Last year's district score was 797.

Students at 57 percent of the schools in the district met performance targets and an additional 21 percent failed to meet their targets but improved their scores from last year.

"The scores turned out great and we feel really good about

them," said Becky Wetzel, the district's director of elementary education.

The elementary schools posted excellent scores, with 15 of 21 receiving a score of 800 or higher and four schools posting a score of 900 or higher. The top performers at the elementary level included Vista (922), Hollow Hills (907), Wood Ranch (907) and Madera (903).

"We saw improvement at a lot of schools and a drop at some, but the scores improved overall from last year, with some schools showing dramatic increases," Wetzel said.

The elementary schools with the biggest API improvements were Sycamore (34) Madera (27), Big Springs (25) and Katherine (22). The only elementary schools in the district not meeting their API growth targets were Santa Susana and Berylwood.

The district attributes its high scores to its new intervention programs designed to help students meet the California standards.

"The intervention classes are small-group programs that focus on helping students to meet gradelevel standards, especially in reading," Wetzel said. "Students are given time to work in very specific programs that address their needs, such as decoding words or reading comprehension."

Students who once had large gaps in their learning are now beginning to close those gaps and excel at their studies, according to the district.

"We have a very diverse group of learners at our schools. We have children from different countries, children with special education needs, and its our job to make sure all these children are achieving certain standards," Wetzel said.

API results were not as positive at the secondary level. Both Simi Valley (774) and Royal (771) high schools failed to meet their API growth targets and in fact saw their scores tumble 17 and 18 points respectively.

On the other hand, Santa Susana High (813), Valley View Middle School (820) and Sinaloa Middle School (801) all scored above 800 and met their growth targets. Hillside Middle School also met its API target growth by improving from 754 in 2005 to 760 in 2006.

"We're developing programs that will give students a bit of a leg up and will try to get them more engaged in learning," said Bill Waxman, the district's director of secondary education.

Extra stand-alone periods that assist students with study skills, math and English language arts have been introduced at the middle school level, he said.

"We not only want to increase their skills, we also want to give them a better feeling about being in school," Waxman said.

The three high schools in the district have also established programs for incoming ninth-graders who need more individualized attention, according to district administrators.

The programs teach these students organizational skills to prevent them from falling behind in their studies and to make the transition between middle school and high school easier.

"These programs are researchbased, standards-based and have proven track records of success," Waxman said. "They're designed to be more engaging for students and to introduce instructional approaches that are differentiated."

While district administrators are happy with the 2006 API scores, they're striving to find ways to improve next year. "We always have room for

improvement. Even if our schools are getting scores of 800, next year we want them to be getting scores of 801," Wetzel said.