[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17437]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          HONORING HIGHLAND ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN INGLEWOOD, CA

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                           HON. MAXINE WATERS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 29, 2010

  Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I rise to honor Highland Elementary School 
in Inglewood, California, located in my district. Highland was recently 
named a Blue Ribbon School by the Department of Education, a coveted 
award recognizing high-performing and improving schools across our 
country. This year, Highland shares this distinction with 304 other 
schools among the thousands of schools in the United States.
  Highland and its teachers, administrators, staff, students, parents 
and community members have really been on a roll. In addition to the 
Blue Ribbon award, the school was also named a California Distinguished 
School, and Highland is a two-time Title One Academic Achievement 
School and California Business School of Excellence.
  I am very appreciative of the efforts by this Congress and this 
Administration to focus on education and the future of our young 
students. We must remain committed to improving schools and providing 
opportunity for all Americans to learn.
  In my district, like many communities in urban America, test scores 
are below average, buildings are in disrepair, and graduation rates are 
too low.
  I was so encouraged to hear about Highland's honor because one of the 
two ways to qualify for the Blue Ribbon award is by having schools with 
at least 40 percent of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds 
improve student performance to high levels.
  Improving test scores early on is crucial to getting kids on the 
right path to a solid education and key to securing critical resources 
that will help our schools turn around.
  I want to particularly honor Highland principal Susan Ippongi and 
Inglewood Unified School District superintendent Gary McHenry for their 
leadership and their dedication to schoolchildren in Inglewood.
  I am looking forward to meeting them in November when representatives 
from the Blue Ribbon schools come to Washington to be formally 
recognized for their achievements.
  I am very proud of Highland's ability to excel over adversity, and 
particularly proud of the young boys and girls who are studying hard 
for a bright future. They are giving Highland Elementary School, our 
community, our city and our country a good name.

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