Kelso Elementary School

Mission Statement

Kelso Elementary School is a wonderful place for children to learn and develop.  Teaching and learning is our number one priority, but each child’s well being is also very important.  As principal, I delight in meeting each new Kelso student and their parents.  New students are always asked to read to me.  I listen for correct pronunciation of alphabet sounds or reading fluency.  Basic mathematical skills may also be assessed during our introductory meeting.  I know that all children can learn and achieve grade level proficiency if they experience a challenging education.  Kelso students are expected to complete homework five nights each week and read at least thirty books each school year.  Teachers send home intersession packets during the off-track vacation time.  We also offer tutorial classes during intersession.  Each spring, several teachers have extended day classes in order to teach small groups of students that need extra instruction.  In recent years Mr. Osborne, the assistant principal, and I have taught a series of Saturday math workshops for students.

        We are committed to making certain each child has the opportunity to master the California standards in English/Language Arts and Mathematics, because we know that “College Begins at Kelso”.  Please read more about Kelso Elementary School at GreatSchools.net and in our School Accountability Report Card (SARC) and I look forward to meeting you in the near future.

School Vision
Students being promoted to the middle school will have the necessary tools for a successful middle school career. Our students will be educationally, technologically, and culturally literate.

• Our API for the 2007–2008 school year is 805. Kelso Elementary School was able to maintain academic excellence by consistently staying above the score of 800 for over a decade.

• In 2005–2006, Kelso Elementary School was honored to receive a California Distinguished School award and was recognized as one of the top 60 schools in Southern California according to Los Angeles Magazine (August 2006).

• Sixty-six percent of students at all grades scored at the Advanced or Proficient level in English/language arts; 56 percent of students scored at the Advanced or Proficient level in math; and 38 percent of fifth grade students scored at the Advanced or Proficient level in science.

• The Los Angeles Times published a front-page article about our remarkable standardized test scores and our similar schools ranking (10 on a scale of 1 to 10) for the API.

• David Klein of Washington D.C.’s Brookings Institute prominently featured Kelso in his research project entitled "High Achievement in Math in Inner City Schools." The Pacific Research Foundation lauded Kelso’s achievements in its report entitled "They Have Overcome." Our success has been favorably mentioned
in a book entitled "Leadership on Purpose: Promising Practices for African American and Hispanic Students" written by Dr. Rex Fortune. The Heritage Foundation prominently featured Kelso in an online article entitled "No Excuses: Lessons from 21 High-Performing, High-Poverty Schools."

• California State University at Long Beach has selected Kelso to participate in a longitudinal study, "Development of Early Literacy among Spanish Speaking Children." The outstanding academic performance of Kelso’s English Learners attracted the attention of CSULB.

• Kelso was recently recognized at the National Gifted and Talented Education conference in San Diego. Our GATE coordinator accepted a monetary award given to high-achieving inner-city schools.

• Furnell Chapman, from KNBC news, broadcasted a highly favorable report on Kelso’s remarkable achievement on the evening news.
Focus for Improvement

• One area Kelso Elementary School will focus on is increasing the percentage of students scoring Proficient and Advanced in English/language arts and math in all grade levels and fifth graders scoring Advanced or Proficient on the science section of the California Standards Tests (CST).

• New state-adopted standards-based science textbooks were purchased in 2007 for all students. We have established a schoolwide Science Center that students have access to on a daily basis. The theme changes monthly. Students will be assessed after completion of each unit. Teachers will meet at grade level to discuss the assessment results and use these to plan further instruction.

• Interventions in reading and math for all grade levels are ongoing.