The Laveen Elementary School District received wonderful news when the state released its latest round of academic performance labels. The District achieved some of the highest AIMS assessment scores in the district’s history in reading, math, and writing. All of Laveen District’s six schools were awarded high achievement labels. Cheatham Elementary, Desert Meadows, Laveen Elementary, M.C. Cash Elementary, and Trailside Point schools each received a label of “Performing Plus,” while Vista del Sur Traditional School received an “Excelling” label, the highest label given for academic achievement.

The Laveen Elementary District is one of thirteen Phoenix Union High School feeder districts. In the past few years, Laveen has made huge academic gains and currently is competing with the top-scoring districts. All six Laveen District schools also made Adequately Yearly Progress (AYP) on the Federal accountability side through No Child Left Behind (NCLB). This is not an easy feat; AYP is a complex formula that evaluates a total of 217 factors. If a school misses even one of the 217, it is labeled as having failed to make AYP.

Improving student achievement has been a top priority in Laveen since Superintendent Dr. Ron Dickson arrived in May 2005. “The District’s success can be contributed to a culture of high student expectations, academically, socially, and behaviorally, by our teachers, staff, and administrators.” said Dickson. “We use data to drive instruction and research-based strategies to ensure that every student reaches their full academic potential and it’s paying off.”

Laveen Elementary School District has taken some big strides in going “Green!” Over the summer the District partnered with Climatec Energy Services, a local energy company, to implement energy conservation measures that will save over $109,000 dollars per year in operational and energy savings. We will use the savings for this project to cover the cost of the project as well as to lower the annual operating costs for the district. Energy conservation measures the district has implemented include equipping: a Building Automation System in four of the schools which allows the district to monitor and adjust heating and cooling systems remotely; air conditioner economizers; internal and external lighting systems that reduce electrical consumption; and classroom lighting equipped with motion sensors to automatically shut off lights.

Through Climatec Energy Services, Laveen District also implemented an energy awareness program that involves everyone from students to teachers to administration. Each school will establish an energy team to set energy goals and promote recycling. Every dollar saved is another dollar for the classrooms.

In addition to the energy conservation initiative, four of the district schools were selected to receive photovoltaic systems through Salt River Project’s Solar for Schools Program. Through this program, the schools will receive a 10-kilowatt root-mounted solar photovoltaic system and teachers will be provided with training and materials to educate students about solar energy, including math applications for data collected from the systems and information on how solar energy works. The four district schools selected to participate are Desert Meadows School, Trailside Point School, Cheatham Elementary School, and Vista del Sur Traditional School.

“Laveen School District is extremely pleased to be part of SRP’s Solar for Schools Program. The solar systems in our four schools will provide a great educational opportunity for our students and at the same time reduce our utility expenditures,” said Superintendent Dr. Ron Dickson.

Meet Your Teacher Night was a huge success at all six Laveen Elementary Schools on July 29 with large crowds in attendance. Students and parents were excited to meet new teachers and visit classrooms.