{"id":656062,"date":"2026-03-14T22:48:17","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T22:48:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/656062\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T22:48:17","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T22:48:17","slug":"four-san-diego-schools-in-running-for-2026-americas-best-schools-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/656062\/","title":{"rendered":"Four San Diego schools in running for 2026 America’s Best Schools award"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Second grade math lesson at Dewey Elementary. (Photo courtesy of Dewey Elementary School)<\/p>\n

Any success that Dewey Elementary School<\/a> and Garfield Elementary School<\/a> have achieved can be credited to the commitment of their teaching staff, according to their principals.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe dedication of the teachers is why the kids are performing, and why people don\u2019t really want to leave the school,\u201d said Dewey Elementary Principal Tanya McMillan.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Garfield Elementary Principal Mechale Murphy calls it having \u201cthe same heart about why you exist and what you\u2019re here to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

These two schools \u2013 alongside Nye Elementary<\/a> in Valencia Park and Sequoia Elementary<\/a> in Clairemont \u2013 are four of the 17 schools nationwide selected by the National Center for Urban School Transformation<\/a> as finalists for the 2026 America\u2019s Best Schools award.<\/p>\n

The award is presented annually to the \u201cthe nation\u2019s highest performing schools,\u201d as determined by the center\u2019s criteria<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some standards that schools must meet include: \u201chigh rates of academic achievement\u201d for every racial\/ethnic group, attendance rates of 92% or more for the past two academic years and low rates of suspension and teacher absences. Judges also are looking for \u201cengaging and effective instruction\u201d and \u201ca positive school culture,\u201d along with involvement in extracurricular activities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to spend our time and energy finding, spotlighting, learning from and helping share the best practices, especially from schools who are bringing that extra level of care, love and empathy \u2013 specifically for students who perhaps have the most challenging circumstances,\u201d said Gregory Ottinger, the executive director for NCUST.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He said that the four San Diego schools show a \u201chigh level of continuity,\u201d where teachers and administration are aligned to meet education standards, while also showing adaptability in \u201ccoaching strategies\u201d suited to grade-level, specific classrooms or individual students.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s certain layers of support that are localized, but, from a systemic perspective, we are seeing the same high expectations, the same relationships, the same kids saying, \u2018We feel like every adult cares about us at this school.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>Garfield Elementary in North Park. (Photo courtesy of Garfield Elementary School)<\/p>\n

Winners will be announced in May, following visits to each nominated school. Here\u2019s a look at two of the San Diego finalists for the America\u2019s Best Schools award.<\/p>\n

Dewey Elementary<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dewey Elementary\u2019s creative approach shows students that learning can take place both inside and outside of a classroom.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For four to eight weeks each school year, students travel by bus to nearby Liberty Station for the Arts District\u2019s performing or visual art classes \u2013 ranging from watercolor to ballet to martial arts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it allows my kids the opportunity to show their genius,\u201d McMillan said. \u201cIf you\u2019re not good at math, you might be good at dancing. If you\u2019re not good at reading, you might be great at martial arts.\u201d<\/p>\n

This program is done in collaboration with the Liberty School Foundation<\/a>, with teachers and art class instructors weaving together art and education by creating curricula adjacent to grade level standards.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For example, if first-grade students take classes at Malashock Dance, they also integrate first-grade math standards, such as by counting steps.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt kind of unlocks everything for kids, like that school doesn\u2019t just have to be reading, writing, math,\u201d McMillan said.<\/p>\n

Dewey Elementary is a Title I school, meaning that a large demographic of students come from low-income families. According to McMillan, 85% of students are \u201cmilitary dependent,\u201d often only staying at the school for two to three years, while 67% of students also participate in free or reduced lunch programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With a majority of students coming from military families, students transfer at all times of the year. The school provides various services for students who may need additional support, such as mental health care, a bi-monthly food distribution program and \u201ctier two reading interventions,\u201d which offers students supplementary instruction from specialists.<\/p>\n

McMillan has been the principal at Dewey Elementary for the past 17 years, but she said that some of her teachers have been there even longer. She described the relationship between school faculty as a \u201cstrong, tight-knit work family.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI definitely have their back, they have mine, and we\u2019re in it together,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd, it helps kids succeed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Garfield Elementary School<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Murphy brought 30 years of experience in education to Garfield Elementary in North Park when she took over as principal five years ago. She said that she and the teaching staff are \u201cvision aligned,\u201d which sets the foundation for educational success among students.<\/p>\n

This is not the first time that Garfield Elementary has been recognized for academic excellence. It was named a 2023 National Blue Ribbon School<\/a> by the U.S. Department of Education, which recognizes \u201cschools whose students achieve at very high levels\u201d or \u201cschools making significant progress in closing achievement gaps among different groups of students.\u201d<\/p>\n

One way the school has approached providing equal opportunities for students is through their \u201cinclusion model\u201d for instruction, which means that some English learners and special education students are integrated into general education classrooms. This model aims to \u201cmaximize the opportunity for both academic and social development,\u201d according to the school\u2019s website<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cInclusion, in my opinion, is probably the hardest work that we do in education,\u201d Murphy said. \u201cNot just from a special-ed point of view, but also around culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Youngsters<\/a>Students in a classroom hear a lesson at Garfield Elementary in North Park. (Photo courtesy of Garfield Elementary School)<\/p>\n

Murphy also introduced a curriculum known as Database Questions (DBQ), which she said \u201cis designed to increase the number of children of color who participate in honors and advanced placements in middle school and high school\u201d by introducing them to concepts such as \u201creading through multiple sources\u201d and \u201cculminating writing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teachers at Garfield Elementary work together, regardless of grade level, to track student progress and create lesson plans that suit student needs. <\/p>\n

Murphy explained that this \u201ccross-grade accountability\u201d accommodates students to fit their learning pace and styles, so that students obtain the knowledge required as they advance grade levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce you open the door, break down the walls of the classroom and start allowing teachers to see what\u2019s happening in other classrooms, you create a professional learning community where everybody feels responsible for results.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Second grade math lesson at Dewey Elementary. (Photo courtesy of Dewey Elementary School) Any success that Dewey Elementary…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":656063,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5134],"tags":[5229,1582,276,13116,56660,20881,87847,3549,37947,7264,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":["post-656062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-america","tag-ca","tag-california","tag-clairemont","tag-elementary-school","tag-north-park","tag-point-loma","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-unified-school-district","tag-sandiego","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=656062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656062\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/656063"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=656062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=656062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=656062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}