Congratulations to the 2009 Blue Ribbon Schools
On September 15, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the 2009 Blue Ribbon Schools. Fifty private schools received this distinguished recognition. Two of those schools were ACSI Member schools. ACSI congratulates The First Academy Lower Schoolin Orlando, Florida and Peoria Christian Elementary Schoolin Peoria, Illinois.
Blue Ribbon Schools
ACSI offers its congratulations to the member schools that have been named as No Child Left Behind—Blue Ribbon Recognized Schools. When a school is selected as a Blue Ribbon School it is indicating to its constituents that it welcomes rigorous appraisal. In fact, the Blue Ribbon selection process is similar to a mini-accreditation process. Schools must provide detailed and verifiable information. The process itself propels the school toward excellence.
U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige established the No Child Left Behind—Blue Ribbon Schools Program to honor the elementary and secondary schools in the United States that make significant progress in closing the achievement gap or whose students achieve at very high levels. The program recognizes the elementary and secondary schools that meet either of two assessment criteria.
1. Schools that have at least 40 percent of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds, or that dramatically improve student performance to high levels on standardized national or state assessment.
2. Schools that are in the top 10 percent of schools in the nation (standardized national assessments) or in the state (standardized state assessments).