Six Tennessee Schools Named NCLB-Blue Ribbon Schools

NASHVILLE - The Tennessee Department of Education announced today that six Tennessee schools have been chosen as 2008 No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools. The NCLB-Blue Ribbon Schools award is given by the U.S. Department of Education each year and honors schools for helping students achieve at very high level and for making significant progress in closing the achievement gap.

“Meeting the criteria for Blue Ribbon status is a tremendous achievement for each of these schools and is evidence that schools are doing the job of educating our children while still meeting federal benchmarks,” Education Commissioner Timothy Webb said. “Administrators, teachers, parents and students in these communities should be proud of themselves and their schools.”

The schools are selected based on one of two criteria:

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

“We are so very proud of theses schools for proving that success can be achieved and they should now serve as a model for other Tennessee schools on moving forward on the path to closing the achievement gap,” said Julie McCargar, Executive Director of Federal Programs for the state.

Tennessee’s Blue Ribbon Schools include:

Northwest Elementary - Fayette County Schools - Ms. Santita Wright, Principal
Walnut Grove Elementary - Hardin County Schools - Ms. Linda Gean, Principal
Mountain City Elementary - Johnson County Schools - Ms. Gay Triplett, Principal
Lawrenceburg Elementary Schools - Lawrence Co. Schools - Dr. Gari Lynn, Principal
John P. Freeman Optional School - Memphis City - Ms. Georgia Parks, Principal
Greeneville High School - Greeneville City Schools - Mr. Jerry Ayers, Principal

For more information, contact Rachel Woods at (615) 253-1960 or Rachel.Woods@state.tn.us.