Schools in the Newhall School District and William S. Hart Union High School District were named 2022 California Pivotal Practice Award Program winners on Tuesday, April 26.

The elementary schools in the Newhall School District included Dr. J. Michael McGrath Elementary, Meadows Elementary, Newhall Elementary, Oak Hills Elementary, Old Orchard Elementary, Peachland Avenue Elementary, Pico Canyon Elementary, Stevenson Ranch Elementary, Valencia Valley Elementary and Wiley Canyon Elementary.

Schools in the William S. Hart Union High School District included William S. Hart High, Golden Valley High and La Mesa Junior High.

The awards, announced by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, are from the newly created 2022 California Pivotal Practice Award Program. The award program is being utilized by California in 2022 in place of the California Distinguished Schools Program.

The award program celebrates schools and districts that implemented an innovative practice during the 2020–21 school year, when California required schools to offer distance learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I’m incredibly proud of these schools and districts for their creativity, dedication and innovation in the face of adversity,” Thurmond said. “These schools led incredible efforts to engage students, distribute technology, provide meals and support the social and emotional well-being of students during an incredibly difficult time for schools and families.”

In a period when pandemic disruptions made it hard to collect data for statewide assessments, the CDE worked with education association partners to create the Pivotal Practice Award Award to honor the efforts of schools and districts who designed and implemented unique opportunities and strategies to support students in this most challenging time.

A total of 727 schools and 121 school districts are being honored for their demonstrated efforts to support students in four target areas:

— Student Engagement

— Distribution of Technology

— Nutrition Services

— Social Emotional Well-Being of Students

The award winners completed an online application highlighting an innovative practice in one of the four target areas that was implemented during the 2020–21 school year. It is anticipated that the California Department of Education will transition back to the California DS Program in 2023.

See the complete list of 2022 CAPP School Awardees and 2022 CAPP District Awardees on the California Department of Education website. More information about the CAAP Award, including the four target areas for innovation, is available on the California Department of Education CAPP Program web page.

Questions about the program may be directed to the Awards Unit at awards@cde.ca.gov.