State superintendent visits Wood Ranch
School earns National Blue Ribbon honors
By Eliav Appelbaum eliav@theacorn.com

MEETING THE CHIEF- State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell is welcomed to campus last Friday by Wood Ranch Elementary School students Austin Ortega, David Stitt, Chris Kovach, Anissa Hewett, Amanda Rodriguez and Abigail Reider.

As far as surprises go, Wood Ranch Elementary received a big one last Friday when State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell popped in for an unexpected visit just a few days after the school had been notified it had earned a National Blue Ribbon honor.

"I was just in the area, passing through," O'Connell said. "This is a great school that has high expectations for all students. . . . It's a model for other schools."

O'Connell visited another state National Blue Ribbon school the day before his visit to Wood Ranch. He only visits a handful of California campuses each year, making this trip all the more special for the school's administration, faculty and students.

O'Connell toured the school with Principal Liz Silverman, Ventura County Superintendent of Schools Charles Weis, Simi Valley Unified School District Superintendent Kathryn Scroggin, Director of Primary Education Deborah Riley, Assistant Superintendent of Personnel Services Don Gaudioso, Director of Curriculum and Instruction Lynn Friedmann and school board members Eric Lundstrom and Jeanne Davis.

CHECKING IN- Jack O'Connell peeks in on a first-grade classroom with Wood Ranch principal Liz Silverman.

During his approximately 45minute visit, O'Connell visited four classrooms, stopping in to speak with teachers and students.

"We found out about this at 9:30 this morning," an excited Silverman said just after O'Connell left. "We're extremely honored he came to visit."

In her fifth year at Wood Ranch, Silverman spent six years as principal at Big Springs Elementary. The year before she entered the Simi Valley school district, Silverman was an assistant principal at Medea Creek Middle School when it won a national honor during the 1996-97 school year. Wood Ranch, the only school in Simi Valley invited to apply for the award, was the only school in Ventura County to earn Blue Ribbon distinction this year.

Since 1994, when the school district began keeping records of the award, only Hollow Hills Elementary and Valley View Middle School have been distinguished on a national level. Silverman and a teacher of her choosing will travel to Washington, D.C., in midNovember for a ceremony honoring all the Blue Ribbon schools in the nation.

"Getting out here to visit schools is the fun part of the job," O'Connell said.

Visitors from the school district also said they enjoyed making the trip to honor Wood Ranch, the largest elementary school in Simi Unified with 680 students.

"It's wonderful to have this recognition," Scroggin said. "We're always pleased to see a school recognized, but we're proud of all our schools."

Weis credited Wood Ranch for looking out for each student's individual needs.

"They personalize the instruction," Weis said, "and assess (students) along the way. Then they give them the support. They've set high standards, but any school can do what this school is doing."

Weis also stressed the importance of preschool education and talked about the Power of Preschool, a free, voluntary program for 4-year-old children in the county.

Wood Ranch didn't have the highest test scores in the district, but it received the honor for its overall excellence.

"It's the big picture," Silverman said. "We want to ensure that all kids are successful."