Shouting with joy and dancing around are not technically part of the curriculum at Carneros Elementary School. But these days, staff at the school on a rural lane among the vines southwest of Napa are celebrating some very good news.

Last month, the school climbed off of the federal government's official list of troubled schools, as defined by the No Child Left Behind Act. That means test scores for Carneros students are on a dramatic upswing, and that the school is out of danger of potential penalties such as having a wholesale change of administration or even a takeover by the state.

Carneros, a school with a high population of low-income kids and those who don't speak English at home, found out Sept. 20 that it is on the move academically.

"We whooped, we hollered, we jumped up and down. It was very, very exciting," said Carneros Principal Donna Drago. The celebration didn't end there. "We pulled the kids out of class for a surprise party," she described. The celebration continued with pizza, juice and cakes that said "Carneros Kids Are Great."

This is Drago's ninth year as principal of Carneros Elementary, having taught for more than 20 years in Napa schools. While at Carneros, Drago has seen major changes in the school's population. When Napa's Westwood Elementary became the Napa Valley Language Academy in 1999, she said Carneros slowly started becoming more diverse, with more English learners and low-income kids. "We used to be a white, middle-class school. Everything changed," said Drago.

Today, more than three-quarters of Carneros students are bussed in daily, mostly from Napa's Westwood neighborhood.

With those changes, and the implementation of the federal No Child Left Behind Act -- which mandates that schools hit ever-increasing targets for test scores in English and math -- Carneros test scores fell below determined ranges. In 2002, the school was placed on Program Improvement, essentially a probation list. Schools considered for the list are so-called Title I schools, those that receive extra federal funding because they serve low-income populations. According to the California Department of Education, more than 1,770 state schools were placed on Program Improvement this school year. Schools on for five years are subject to discipline up to a takeover by state education authorities.

Drago described her reaction to the news delivered more than three years ago. "It was disheartening," she said. "It made us more determined to figure out what we needed to do to make these kids more successful."

With that goal, Drago, her staff and students began a series of resolutions to improve their standing, starting with teamwork.

"We had a huge change in the way we worked together," said Drago. "We started making time for collaboration. We'd bring in substitutes, and the regular teachers would spend the entire day doing long-range planning, looking for best ways to teach concepts and looking at assessment results."

Drago's team also embraced "Academy for Success," a series of strategies for Program Improvement schools. These sessions consisted of numerous weekend and summer meetings.

"We learned new strategies for teaching," said Drago. "They made so much sense that we decided to implement all of the Academy for Success strategies."

Erica Sonnenberg, a fifth-grade teacher who has been at Carneros for four years, described learning the new methods: "At the beginning of the year, when there were so many new strategies to learn, it was like being a new teacher all over again; it was overwhelming. But Donna made sure we didn't get overwhelmed. She made it possible for us to pull off the process."

One new strategy is called Board Math. Drago explained how in a traditional classroom, students complete a chapter on a certain concept, review, test and then move on to the next chapter and concept. They may not return to that concept until months later. With Board Math, Drago explained how teachers divide their classroom white board into sections according to state standards. This allows kids to practice those standards, "day in and day out," said Drago. "With the new method like Board Math students address all the standards continuously. They retain the information. Period."

Drago said that there are between 22 and 100 math standards to master within grades K-5. Students use individual white boards to show answers giving the teacher a quick sense for how the kids are doing.

"My staff is awesome," said Drago. "I don't have anybody who's sticking to the old ways. When something's not working, nobody is afraid to ask for help. Everybody's an active participant in the teaching of our kids."

Drago explained that her staff also began to work with kids on long-term goals.

"We decided we needed to start talking to our kids about a future," she said. "We don't want our kids to be done with school and only earn minimum wage." She said staffers asked two questions of students. First, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" And secondly, "Where do you want to go to college?"

"We used to not get answers or responses," said Drago. Today, she said, "We are. We've upgraded student expectations."

Parent Sonia Paniagua has two sons at Carneros School. Paniagua said she sees the results of goal setting at Carneros. "Our principal really emphasizes that college is important to the students." Her son, second-grader Louis David, has talked of being a firefighter or architect.

Sonia Paniagua said she knew the school was on probation but said it didn't bother her. "I knew that they were doing a lot of things to get out of Program Improvement, so I still wanted my sons to be there."

With 184 kids, Carneros is one of Napa's smaller public schools. Drago said the small student population helped turn things around quickly. "Being a smaller school had a huge impact on our success" said Drago. "We don't lose kids, nobody falls through the cracks."

"Small is huge," said the principal. But while Carneros' small school size has lead to success in the classroom, it could lead to further scrutiny by administrators.

The Napa Valley Unified School District is undertaking a "facilities study" that may result in a realignment of who is expected to attend different campuses. This could result in small schools growing and big schools shrinking. School authorities say they do not intend to close any schools, but have not said a school closure is out of the realm of possibility.

Another significant fact about Carneros is that unlike, for example, NVLA, Carneros is not a dual-immersion school with equal instruction in Spanish and English. "We firmly believe the sooner kids develop English proficiency, the more successful they will be in school," said Drago. "People don't truly understand how significantly language proficiency and low socioeconomic status impact the child's ability to learn."

Drago gave kudos to NVUSD Superintendent John Glaser for backing her school's efforts. "He constantly asks what we can do for the school," she said. "John Glaser has definitely created a more collaborative culture that provides support to my school."

Carneros families also get credit from Drago. "The parent community supports our school. The parents support and trust the teachers," said Drago.

Sonnenberg said, "I love working here because it's a small school; it really feels like a family." The fifth grade teacher explained how the students responded to the Program Improvement challenge. "The kids have been focused on learning, they know they are doing much better and that we're giving them a lot of credit. They're setting goals in their classrooms, they understand how important their piece in this puzzle is. We have always known these kids can do so much, and now we have proof. It feels good."

Lisa Miri, principal at Shearer Charter Elementary -- a low-income, high English-learner school in Napa's Old Town that is also on Program Improvement -- is another supporter of Carneros School. As an elementary school principal, she said, "I understand the state regulations and I understand what a great accomplishment the Carneros staff and students carried out."

"There are very few schools that can do what Donna's did. I think its incredible," said Miri. "As the as the federal accountability targets increase in rigor, it's more difficult for schools to meet all of the requirements."

"Their staff works hard. They are generous in sharing their ideas and experience, and they open their doors for others in the district to see what they are doing. The whole district is very proud of them," Miri said.

The hard work of Carneros students, staff and families doesn't end here. "We've got to keep hammering away," said Drago. "We keep doing what we know made a huge difference. We keep questioning ourselves. We keep using data to verify student learning."

"As our population was changing, it was like trying to climb a glass wall. Now we feel like we got a foothold," she said. "We're working just as hard, we just feel like we finally figured it out."