Only a handful of schools in the San Antonio region emerged with the highest rating of 'exemplary' in the Texas Education Agency's accountability ratings released this week, and two of them - Leon Springs Elementary in the Northside School District and Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary in the Boerne ISD -are located within three miles of each other.

"I have been in teaching for 31 years, and this is the most awesome school I have ever been in," Fair Oaks Ranch Vice Principal Susie Nelson said upon hearing the news.  "We are very excited."

It's the same situation just down Interstate 10 at Leon Springs Elementary.

"We are absolutely thrilled," said Linda Mora, deputy superintendent for curriculum and instruction in the Northside ISD.

Both of the schools have performance numbers which are nothing short of amazing. At Leon Springs, for example, 98 percent of the students met or exceeded state standards in reading, 99 percent in writing, 96 percent in mathematics and 95 percent in science.

It is the science numbers that pleased Mora the most.

"The science is amazing," she said.  "As you know, science is the toughest area right now, and the area that the TEA is concerned about the most."

The student performance at Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary is just as strong, with 99 percent of all students meeting or exceeding the state reading requirements, 96 percent in writing, 98 percent in mathematics, and 93 percent in science.

The two elementary schools credited both their students and their teachers for their strong performance.

"Mediocre is not in these teachers' vocabularies," Nelson said.

The exceptional schools focus on two distinct areas, which are establishing a curriculum and maintaining it and focusing on 'life long learning.'  Both said their teachers and administrators work extra to make sure every student succeeds.

"They target every student," Mora said of Leon Springs Principal Kathy Dodge-Clay and her staff.  "They work very hard at it."

Nelson said having an exemplary school in the area is good for the economy.

"People come here because they want their kids to go to Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary," she said.  "And the Boerne ISD is a shining, growing district."

Nelson says the last time Fair Oaks Ranch elementary rated exemplary, the teachers were rewarded with an Italian dinner cooked by the administrators, complete with an opera singer.  She says she and principal Sandi Kello have some ideas in mind for a reward this year, but she wants it to be a surprise.

But nobody is kicking back now that they have achieved exemplary status.

"Our challenge now is to maintain this status," Nelson said.  "That's where the real challenge is."