U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today named 250 schools as the first ones to be selected in the 2006 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools Program. These public and private K-12 schools are being honored for helping close the achievement gap and for their students who achieve at very high levels.

Spellings will announce a second group of schools in October, when more data on their achievements are available.

"These schools show what wonderful accomplishments can be made when we focus on the bottom line in education – student achievement," Spellings said.

"All of these schools have students from all subgroups who've made impressive test gains or who scored in the top tier on state tests. They are outstanding examples of how all students can achieve to higher standards."

The No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools Program recognizes schools that make significant progress in closing the achievement gap or whose students achieve at very high levels. The schools are selected based on one of two criteria:

• Schools with at least 40 percent of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds that dramatically improve student performance to high levels on state tests

• Schools whose students, regardless of background, achieve in the top 10 percent of their state on state tests or in the case of private schools in the top 10 percent of the nation on nationally-normed tests.

Under No Child Left Behind, schools must make Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP, in reading and language arts and mathematics. Each state—not the federal government—sets its own academic standards and benchmark goals, because each state knows best what goals and criteria are most appropriate for its school districts.

Every state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, has an assigned number of possible schools based on the number of students and the number of schools in the state. A total of 413 schools can be nominated. The state's CCSO nominates public schools and the Council for American Private Education (CAPE) nominates private schools. Once the secretary has the nominations from the CCSO and CAPE, the secretary invites the nominated schools to submit applications for possible recognition as a No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon School.

The 2006 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools will be honored at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., November 9-10.

Further information on the program and a list of current winners can be accessed at http://www.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/awards.html.

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