It’s been a good year thus far for the Bremerton School District.

Despite a few questionable actions by the school board at the beginning of the year, the district is trucking along nicely. In less than one month, the district has taken two state accolades. The first belongs to Bremerton High School Principal Aaron Leavell who was named the Washington State Principal of the Year by the Association of Washington School Principals. It certainly is a change for the high school, which hasn’t always carried the best reputation.

That stigma is changing for the better, however, thanks to the hard work of the school’s staff as well as the students. Kudos to Leavell and his coworkers for working to make BHS a safe and reputable place for students to learn. It may take an entire staff for a school to run smoothly, but it starts at the top.

Crownhill Elementary School is following suit in terms of state excellence. The school was honored Tuesday with a $20,000 state education prize for dramatically increasing scores on Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) tests. This obviously took a group effort, ranging from the students and their teachers to the parents of these children who supported their hard work.

For Crownhill Elementary to be recognized positively for the WASL — which is often marred by contention — it is a promising honor for the Bremerton School District to stand behind. Even better than an award for all to see is one that comes with money to spend on furthering students’ education.

The recent honors haven’t stopped there as this week it was announced Bremerton High School Athletic Director George Duarte was voted Athletic Director of the Year for the Olympic League by his colleagues.

Kudos to the Bremerton School District staff for leading a path to positive change.