JONESVILLE, Va. — Three Southwest Virginia schools were among the 162 Virginia public schools that recently earned the 2009 Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence. The winning Lee County schools were Elydale Elementary, Ewing Elementary and Saint Charles Elementary.

The award is the highest honor under the Virginia Index of Performance incentive program created by the Virginia Board of Education. Last year, 89 schools received the award.

“The fact that nearly twice as many schools met or exceeded the rigorous criteria for the award this year speaks to the progress Virginia’s public schools are making,” stated Governor Timothy M. Kaine. “It also speaks to the wisdom of the commonwealth’s approach of including in its accountability program incentives for schools to exceed [beyond] minimum expectations for student achievement,” he added.

To qualify for the Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence, schools and divisions must meet all state and federal achievement benchmarks for at least two consecutive years and achieve the governor’s goals for elementary reading; enrollment in Algebra I by grade 8; enrollment in college-level courses; attainment of advanced diplomas; increased attainment of career and industry certifications; and participation, if eligible, in the Virginia Preschool Initiative.

Schools and school divisions earn bonus points for other performance measures including the Governor’s Nutrition and Physical Activity Scorecard.

Each school earning a Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence will receive a display banner and a signed resolution of commendation from Governor Kaine.

The Lee County school divisions were among the 24 divisions and 544 schools earning the Virginia Board of Education’s Excellence Award, the second-tier honor in the Virginia Index of Performance program. These schools and divisions also have met all state and federal accountability benchmarks for at least two consecutive years and have made significant progress toward goals for increased student achievement and expanded educational opportunities set by Governor Kaine and the board.

Individual Lee County schools earning the award include Jonesville Middle, Keokee Elementary, Pennington Middle and Rose Hill.

Ten school divisions and 276 schools earned the Board of Education’s Competence to Excellence Award. This award recognizes schools and divisions that have met all state and federal benchmarks for at least two consecutive years and are making progress toward Virginia Index of Performance objectives reflecting the goals of Governor Kaine and the board. In Lee County, they include Elk Knob Elementary, Flatwoods Elementary and Thomas Walker High.

Schools and divisions earning the Board of Education’s Excellence Award, Competence to Excellence Award and Rising Star Award will each receive a resolution of commendation from the board.

A list of all schools and school divisions earning Virginia Index of Performance Awards is available on the Virginia Department of Education website at www.doe.virginia.gov/.

C.J. Harte is a staff writer for the Middlesboro Daily News. Contact him via e-mail at charte@middlesborodailynews.com.