That dream included a sparkling clean campus and the opportunity to hand pick her teachers, establish school traditions and introduce herself to the neighborhood. Now she is experiencing a maternal-like pride in her students and staff, with her school named a 2004 California Distinguished School.

"We really believe in our kids," Garcia said. "It's a wonderful place to be."

That commitment to challenge and nurture young learners is reflected in Canoas' goal to have students achieve at or above 90 percent on standardized tests and to continually praise children for their accomplishments.

"It's about cheering them on," said Garcia, adding that rewarding children and making learning fun are twin goals.

During the week of state standardized testing, Garcia displays encouraging posters in English and Spanish around the school and gives out pencils and Smarties candies to keep her students' spirits high.

In the three years since the school has opened, the school's API scores have climbed 102 points. With a richly diverse student population including 50 percent English learners and 70 percent students on free or reduced lunch, that is no easy feat.

"The principal pushes the teachers to have the students thrive," said parent Adrian Robles.

But Garcia credits the teachers' collaboration and the weekly strategizing for maintaining a high level of continuity in their students' progress.

"Our teachers deserve to be recognized," she said. "It's an honor to be acknowledged as a California Distinguished School, but we don't [put in the effort] for prizes."

During the application and visitation process for California Distinguished School status, Garcia said the judges commented on how well the teachers and students track their progress and set improvement goals.

Besides the students' scholastic progress, Garcia said that developing self-esteem and interpersonal skills were also core values to instill in the children.

"Your work is never done," she said.

It was Garcia's outstanding reputation with parents and teachers at her former school that caused parent Fe Singh to switch her daughter to Canoas when it opened in 2000.

"She gives the parents options, and our opinions always count," Singh said. She added that Garcia tells parents that they run the school and the principal is only there to help.

That strong sense of parent involvement, and the expectation that each family will volunteer four hours per month, help contribute to the school's success and sense of community.

"It's a small school, and a lot of the parents know each other," Singh said.

Robles, a parent of a third-grade bilingual student, said the school's family environment made it inviting for him to become involved as a yard-duty volunteer and a tutor.

"The best thing is the principal," Robles said. "Her No. 1 priority is the kids. It doesn't matter what color they are or last name they have, she's there for them."