Findings from the survey were released during the conference held Thursday, Dec. 4, in Cary. The conference featured speeches by Governor-Elect Purdue, State Supt. Of Public Education June St. Clair Atkinson, and Chairman of the State Board of Education Howard Lee. &bsp;

Sunny View Elementary teachers Maureen Keller and Kellie Bradley, media specialist Angela Hall and technology specialist Judy E. Jackson attended the conference with Polk BOE Chairman Geoffrey Tennant, BOE member Judy N. Jackson and Superintendent Bill Miller. Keller, Hall, Bradley and Judy E. Jackson created and provided a 45- minute presentation at the conference that spoke to the school&squo;s best practices and demonstrated how strong support from families, administration and the community enable the staff and students to succeed.

&dquo;The board of education is pleased to recognize the efforts of Sunny View&squo;s staff in developing a best practice that is recognized as being one of the top fifteen in the state,&dquo; says BOE Chairman Tennant. &dquo;It is a tribute to the instructional staff, administration and community as well as the student body. It demonstrates their commitment to a program centered on improvements in public education.&dquo;

An initial analysis of data from the 2008 survey and previous years&squo; surveys found strong and significant connections between positive teacher working conditions and student achievement. In particular, survey results showed that schools with strong, supportive leadership and schools with sufficient resources had students performing at higher levels. The report also found that an adequate amount of planning time, atmosphere of trust and effective School Improvement Teams are connected to student performance and teacher retention.

&dquo;We are very honored and humbled by this recognition, it is based on a lot of hard work by everyone: teachers, administrators, parents, students and community members,&dquo; Maureen Keller, SVE first grade teacher, says. &dquo;We are proud of our school as well as Polk County, because Sunny View&squo;s success would not be possible without the support of our county.&dquo;

&dquo;I am very excited that the hard work and effort of all of our teachers, students and families is being recognized,&dquo; says Principal Rick Howell, who says that after the school hung the banner it received at the conference, he spent Friday morning visiting each classroom and congratulating the students and teachers on their accomplishment. &dquo;I am especially excited for our kids, they are who we are all here for and who this award is about. We strive for excellence here at Sunny View and we plan to spend the rest of the week celebrating.&dquo;

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