Mt. SAC Early College Academy was selected and recognized as the 2026 California Distinguished School for “Academic Gap Closers” on March 10, 2026. This marks it as the second time MECA has won the award, prior to being recognized in 2024.

Both the West Covina Unified School District and administration at MECA were pleased with the achievement, with the official WCUSD Instagram account posting their congratulations for the three schools that won, including Edgewood High School and Hollencrest Middle School.

Nate Slaymaker, MECA’s principal, said, “It’s just an example of the hard work that both our staff and our students put into making MECA such a great school.”

Having won the award before in 2024, the current administration is figuring out how they can celebrate this occasion.

“So I know in the past there was a celebration for when MECA received the Blue Ribbon Award…there’s definitely some plans for some celebrations both on the California Distinguished School Award and with the testing that’s coming up in a few weeks,” Slaymaker said.

The criteria required for a California Distinguished School are based on the school’s state testing scores, college readiness, school culture, and support systems. 

In order to continue gaining this recognition by the State Department of Education, Slaymaker encourages students to do well on their state testing, which is set to happen in some weeks time.

“I also want to encourage our juniors…that we want them to do their best on the testing so that we can continue to receive awards like this and celebrate together,” Slaymaker said, “I just want to see us continue to grow in a lot of ways and so. Thanks to all the hard work that’s put in by our staff and students.”