News Releases
Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - April 18, 2003
Contact:  Kirsten Kendrick, Governor’s Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Alt Contact:  Kim Schmanke, Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, 360-725-6015

Gov. Gary Locke, Superintendent of Public Instruction Honor Cashmere School as April ‘Reading School of the Month’

Gov. Gary Locke and Terry Bergeson, state superintendent of public instruction, today presented Vale Elementary School in Cashmere with the “Reading School of the Month” award for April 2003.

“Reading is the key to all academic success,” Locke told Vale students today. “No matter what you want to do when you grow up, you have to start by being a good reader. I am so proud of all the progress the students at Vale have made.”

Vale Elementary has placed a serious emphasis on improving its reading scores. The school’s average reading WASL score has increased 10 percentage points over the past five years. Last year, Vale students scored an average of 70.2 percent on the reading WASL, while the state average was 65.6. Forty-two percent of Vale students participate in the state’s free or reduced lunch program.

“Schools selected for this award have done more than just raise the scores of their students,” Bergeson shared during her visit. “They’ve struck the right balance of a focus on instruction and providing an environment where the students and teachers feel supported and valued. Vale Elementary has an energy and excitement that’s all about helping students achieve their goals.”

Locke and Bergeson read “The Best Place to Read” by Debbie Bertram and Susan Bloom to an all-school assembly. They also presented an autographed copy of the book to the school.

The governor and the superintendent started the “Reading School of the Month” program in January 2002 to raise awareness about the importance of reading and learn how struggling schools made drastic changes to become exemplary reading schools.

Miss Washington 2002, Amanda Beers, also read to students and shared her success story. Beers, a 20-year-old Tri-Cities native, has a 50 percent hearing loss in both ears and has still become an accomplished, award-winning pianist. She was a finalist in the Miss America Pageant last fall.


Related Links:
- Governor's Web site
- Miss Washington's Web site
- School of the Month Web site
- K-12 Web site


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