If Dave Anderson could, he would split his new award into segments and feed his much-deserving staff.

After all, it is a Golden Apple.

“They might leave me with the core,” said Anderson, principal of Mount Vernon High School, with a laugh.

Anderson was one of two Washington state principals to receive the 2008 KCTS Golden Apple Award, which recognizes individuals and programs making a difference in state education.

Anderson said the high school’s staff are the driving force behind his being selected for the award.

“I’m amazed at the work ethic of our staff,” Anderson said. “If we were just doing the status quo, I wouldn’t have this award. You’re only leading if they follow.”

Anderson was one of 10 award-winners, which included teachers and program directors within various public education fields.

Despite the odds against his winning — more than 200 teachers, staff and programs were nominated for the 10 awards — Anderson filled out the necessary paperwork after he learned of his nomination.

“I was humbled when I learned I had been nominated, and said ‘Yeah, right,’” he said. “If you’ve been nominated it means that somebody has taken that time to recognize you.”

In September, Anderson learned that he had received the award, but could not go public with the information until an October statement was released by KCTS.

According to that statement, Anderson received the award due to his help in transforming the culture for students and staff to promote success at the high school.

Nearly 50 percent of Mount Vernon High School’s students are eligible for free or reduced cost lunch and the school has a sizable percentage of Latino students, meaning Anderson has to be able to deal with socio-economic concerns, as well as administrative duties, the release said.

“Our demographics are unlike any in Skagit County,” Anderson said of the high school.

Despite those challenges, Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) scores at the high school have nearly doubled in reading, writing and math between the 2003 and 2007 school years.

Anderson said part of those improvements are due to the school’s Advanced Placement classes, which have aggressively pushed students beyond their expectations.

“We’re excited that our kids can be challenged,” he said. “Our AP classes go above and beyond what other schools offer — what we offer is truly the exception.”

Superintendent Carl Bruner said Anderson’s award shows that the high school is moving in the right direction to improve student achievement.

“We think that this recognition is well-deserved and should be shared by his staff,” Bruner said. “I know that’s the way he looks at it as well.”

Bruner said high schools in most districts tend to be the center of big, sometimes controversial issues.

“We’ve got a guy like Dave ... who is consistently persistent in trying to solve problems and improve the image of Mount Vernon High School,” Bruner said. “He’s done it without asking for much in return.”

Anderson will be formally honored in January, when Golden Apple winners will take part in a recorded ceremony in Seattle. That ceremony will later be broadcast on public television stations statewide.

A camera crew is also scheduled to follow Anderson around the high school to film a short vignette for the ceremony, said Stefanie Malone, project manager for the Golden Apple Awards.

In addition to Anderson’s Golden Apple statuette, he will receive $250, as well as a $1,500 grant for the high school from Seattle-based PEMCO Insurance.

Recipients of the awards were selected through a panel including representatives from and former Golden Apple award winners and local educators, Malone said.

The nominations are scanned by an initial round of judging. Those judges then forward about 35 nominees to a larger panel of judges, Malone said.

Representatives from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Association of Washington School Principals, the Washington Education Association and the Washington State Parent Teacher Association then select the winners, Malone said.

“I ask the judges to consider that it’s statewide and just ask them to make sure we’re representing different areas and subjects of study,” Malone said.

Golden Apple Award winners have been recognized by KCTS since 1992.

n Adam Rudnick can be reached at 360-855-1641 or at