The Mehlville School District is one of 176 districts statewide to receive the Distinction in Performance Award, which is based on criteria established by the Missouri Board of Education.

Affton, Fox, Lindbergh and Rockwood are among some of the other local school districts earning the honor, according to an announcement by Gov. Bob Holden.

The annual recognition is based on school districts’ performance on Missouri Assessment Program test scores, ACT test scores, attendance and dropout rates, and other measures of academic performance during the previous school year.

“It is encouraging that these school districts are making the kind of consistent academic progress that is required to qualify for this important recognition,” Holden stated in a news release.

“Last year, 161 districts received this award. We continue to benefit from the important investments made in education over the past decade. It’s imperative that we protect education funding so we do not lose momentum,” the governor added.

Districts receiving the Distinction in Performance Award this year include 23 elementary districts and 153 kindergarten-through-12-grade districts.

To earn the Distinction in Performance Award, a K-12 school district had to meet 11 of 12 possible performance indicators, including all of the standards that are based on the Missouri Assessment Program exams. The Mehlville School District met all 12 standards, scoring a perfect 100 possible points.

“This award belongs to the students and staff members in our buildings that work very hard each and every day to be their best,” Mehlville Superintendent Tim Ricker stated in a Mehlville news release.

“On behalf of the Board of Education and the administrative team, I’d also like to thank the parents of our students for supporting our schools’ efforts to challenge their children to do better today than they were yesterday,” he added.

The Distinction in Performance Award is issued annually and is designed to be an incentive for school districts to focus on improving academic achievement.

This marks the second consecutive year that Mehlville has earned the prestigious award.

The Mehlville School District is developing plans to officially celebrate this outstanding achievement districtwide, the district news release stated.

The Missouri Board of Education formally will recognize all award-winning school districts during a series of meetings across the state this spring.