DAPHNE — Daphne East Elementary students had reason to celebrate after the school received two awards totaling $50,000 from the Alabama Board of Education.

The awards coincide with state legislation stating schools that meet and exceed expectations of the No Child Left Behind Act shall be rewarded, according to Daphne East Elementary School Principal Tommie Conaway.

No Child Left Behind, signed into law in January 2002, created standards in each state for what third- through eighth-graders should know and learn in reading and math.

“The school received $10,000 for addressing the challenge and $40,000 for

exceeding the challenge,” Conaway said.

Daphne East had closed the achievement gap for students to be proficient in math and reading by 15 percent overall, according to Conaway.

“Daphne East succeeded by going above and beyond state expectations,” Conaway said.

Students, in celebrating the achievement, recently released balloons into the sky.

“We released the balloons to represent how we want to go higher and higher,” Conaway said.

“We were given a challenge and with hard work, we met that challenge,” Conaway said.

Alabama third- through fifth-graders annualy take standardized tests. The state school board looked at the progress each school had made in determining awards, Conaway said.

“Well apparently we did well,” Conaway said, citing this year’s awards.

Last year, the school only received $5,000.

“That’s a big jump; we’re real pleased with that,” Conaway said.

The faculty voted to upgrade the school’s technology with the award money, according to Conaway.

The faculty soon will vote on what technologies they’ll purchase — whether computers, interactive projection screens, or instructional and support materials — Conaway said.

Officials at the Alabama Board of Education did not return calls by press time.

Terry Wilhite, director of communications with the Baldwin County Board of Education, also did not return correspondence by press time.