Desert View Academy had a special guest Wednesday morning: Arizona State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne.
Horne — who is running for re-election this year in the primary against Kimberly Yee — came to acknowledge the charter school for outperforming the state in last year’s statewide achievement tests.
DVA Eagles achieved a 55% reading proficiency compared to the state’s 40%. In math, they achieved 56% compared to the state’s 31%. In science, they achieved 52% compared to the state’s 34%.
Standing before Miss Rust’s leadership class, Horne presented a commemorative plaque to their principal.
“Our state’s leaders come from the people who did well in school, so I’m looking at the future leaders of our state,” he said to the kids. “ So when you go home, I want you to tell your parents that the state superintendent of schools, Tom Horne, came to our school. It's easy to remember — my name is two instruments, a tom-tom and a horn — Tom Horne, and told me that I'm a future leader of the state. Will you do that for me?”
The kids readily agreed, and Horne soon after toured the campus, peeking inside classrooms and greeting teachers and students. Some of the halls had learning coaches, or paraprofessionals, sitting outside with students. They’re one of several keys to the school’s success, according to Principal Analisa Angulo.
“We're almost a one-to-one. We have 36 teachers and about 25 learning coaches,” she said. “I think what makes us different is that we’re able to give intense small group intervention. You know, the key is 3rd grade; they’ve got to be able to read 3rd grade at that level. And after that, you see the struggles and the gaps really get very, very compound. So we put a lot of emphasis into our early development for our kids from kinder to 2nd grade.”
Angulo explained to Horne that the learning coaches go into primary grades, support the kids, and then do the same for intermediate grades.
“I think we're really lucky and fortunate that we prioritize that in our school, and we've seen those effects over the years. So we expect those results, which I think is great because we have high expectations and so that becomes the norm,” she said.
Upon finishing his tour, Horne left with a positive impression of the school.
“They're excelling academically, which is why I came because I like to recognize excellence. But also, the school has a terrific atmosphere,” he told KAWC. “You can see all the messages of kindness and other positive things on the walls. You can see the way the kids are and the way the teachers are. It's a school with a terrific, terrific atmosphere, wonderful teachers and great leadership.”
And that impression is an accurate one in Principal Angulo’s view.
“I was really proud of our teachers. Nothing was on display today that you would not normally see every day — nothing at all,” she said. “As a leader, it's important that you allow everybody to be their best. It is not my job to have the answers for every question. It is my job to surround myself with smart, educated people that can answer those questions.
“So I say that with this: I have complete confidence in all of the teachers that are here at Desert View. They're going to get the job done. I have complete confidence that these teachers are always going to do what's best for students, not what's convenient for them. So with walking Tom Horne around, it was a moment to have him look in the classrooms and see what our teachers are doing.”
Angulo added that Wednesday was a shining moment for everyone — teachers, learning coaches, support staff and students alike. She was particularly glad to have the students who earned perfect scores in the room when Horne presented the plaque, too.
“They took their time, they checked their work, they showed their work. They probably answered questions that they might not have known the answer to, but they were brave enough to just, to do it, right? Just make an educated choice. Believe in yourself. Use your gut,” she said. “And so those gut instincts, that belief, that confidence comes from home and comes from our educators, and they pour that into the students.
“Having about 18 students with a perfect score in one year is amazing. Having two students with two perfect scores in the same year — one ELA [English Language Arts], one math — that’s amazing. So I felt really honored to highlight Desert View and highlight what’s important to us.”
Looking ahead, Angulo is excited to see Desert View become a unified campus. Currently, Desert View Middle School’s new facility is under construction right next to DVA. She expects they’ll be finished by July, just in time for the next school year.
In the meantime, Angulo hopes interested families will come out to their enrollment fair for both schools this Saturday. The event will take place at 3771 W. 16th Street from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. There’ll be food trucks, games and free pancakes.
This reporting is supported by a grant from the Arizona Local News Foundation.
