A Wayne County elementary school is among the first recipients of a new state award created after the Trump Administration ended a prestigious program last month.
For four decades, the U.S. Department of Education’s National Blue Ribbon Schools program recognized schools with high academic achievement or those that made significant progress in closing achievement gaps. Many educators considered it the highest honor a school could receive.
After the program ended abruptly, the Pennsylvania Department of Education started its own Blue Ribbon program and announced the first 13 honorees on Tuesday.
Lakeside Elementary School in the Wayne Highlands School District received recognition for closing achievement gaps. Gaps occur when one student group outperforms another. Administrators of the Texas Twp. school credit following the “Wayne Highlands Way” — keeping a student-centered approach at all times and maintaining an expectation of high achievement — for the honor.
“From the kids to the bus drivers to the teachers, I mean, everybody… it's not just something we say, it's something that we do,” Principal Patrick Blaskiewicz said. “'I’m proud to be a part of that. This is something we’re definitely going to celebrate.”
The school went through a lengthy application process for the national award in the spring, before the federal government ended the program. Since the program started in 1982, more than 9,700 schools nationwide received blue ribbon honors. Pennsylvania developed the statewide program to continue “recognizing the efforts made by schools to create safe and welcoming spaces where students can master challenging and engaging content,” according to Tuesday’s announcement from the state department of education.
“Pennsylvania’s schools deserve to have their hard work recognized, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” Pennsylvania Acting Secretary of Education Carrie Rowe said in a news release. “While Washington may have stepped back from the Blue Ribbon program, the Shapiro Administration is stepping forward to shine a light on schools that are showing real progress in closing the achievement gap. These schools prove that with commitment, creativity and care. We can ensure that every student has the freedom to chart their own course and the opportunity to succeed. That’s something worth celebrating, and Pennsylvania is proud to lead the way.”
Lakeside serves students in third through fifth grades “in a close-knit, rural community composed of hardworking families who value education, growth and grit,” according to a testimonial from the school, posted on the state website.
Of the school’s approximately 425 students, about half participate in after-school activities, in which students receive academic help and social interaction.
“Despite a predominantly low socioeconomic population, our students consistently rise to the occasion and perform at high academic levels, a reflection of both their determination and the dedication of our outstanding educators,” according to the testimonial.
Wayne Highlands Superintendent Gregory Frigoletto hopes the accomplishment fosters future success.
“We know that it's really important to have a culture whereby the expectations are that we're always going to be working hard with a lot of grit, having a growth mindset, and we're going to achieve the best we can,” he said. “We're going to get every kid as close to meeting those goals as possible.”
