A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Contact:
Melinda Ulloa
(202) 205-8811

RILEY NAMES 266 BLUE RIBBON SCHOOLS

U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley today announced the selection of 266 public and private elementary schools as the 1998-99 Blue Ribbon Schools.

Since its inception in 1982 the Blue Ribbons Schools Program has honored 3,800 of America's most successful schools. These schools have met the U.S. Department of Education's rigorous, research based criteria for overall excellence. They excel in all areas of academic leadership, teaching and teacher development, and school curriculum. In addition, they exhibit exceptional levels of community and parental involvement, high student achievement levels and rigorous safety and discipline programs within their schools.

"These schools are examples of the good things happening in education nationwide," Riley said. "They reflect the hard work of dedicated parents, teachers, students and staff and serve as models for providing students with the high quality learning opportunities they need to be successful in the 21st century."

This year, 221 public and 45 private schools in 37 states and Puerto Rico will be recognized. The schools were nominated by state education agencies, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Department of Defense, and the Council for American Private Education. Each of these nominating agencies has an assigned Blue Ribbon Schools Program Liaison which provides materials and information during the application process. Elementary and secondary schools participate in alternate years with middle schools participating in the program with secondary schools. This year's winners are elementary schools.

Schools were selected for recognition by a national review panel which conducted a thorough evaluation, involving administrators, teachers, students, parents and community representatives in the completion of the nomination forms. This process included assessing schools' strengths and weaknesses and developing strategic plans for the future.

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NOTE TO EDITORS: A list of recognized schools is available upon request and at our website at http://www.ed.gov/offices/OIIA/Recognition/nclb-brs/brs.html.

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