Friday, November 21, 2003

Eight Georgia schools nominated for National Blue Ribbon award

Seaborn Lee Elementary off South Fulton Parkway was recently named one of eight Georgia schools nominated to the 2004 “No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Schools” program by State Supt. Kathy Cox.

No Fayette or Coweta schools qualified for Cox’s list of nominees, which included eight urban schools that showed dramatic increases in student achievement during the past year.

In addition to Seaborn, Cox included three schools from Muscogee County: Columbus High, Britt David Magnet School and Edgewood Elementary School. The others are Capitol View Elementary (Atlanta), Lincoln Fundamental Elementary (Dougherty), Davidson Magnet School (Richmond) and Kittredge Magnet School (DeKalb).

“I can’t be more proud of these schools,” said Cox, a Peachtree City resident and former high school teacher in Fayette County. “The effort that the teachers and students have made to help bridge the achievement gap is outstanding. These schools are models for the state, and they are moving forward to provide all children with the educational foundation upon which their dreams and future success will be built.”

U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige established the “No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Schools” program to honor public and private K-12 schools that are either academically superior in their states or that demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement. The program requires Blue Ribbon recipients to meet specific assessment criteria: dramatic improvement in schools with significant populations of students from disadvantaged backgrounds or schools scoring in the top 10 percent on state assessments regardless of student background.

“President Bush has made it a priority to improve public education in America, and in Georgia we are working hard to lead the nation in improving student achievement,” said Cox.

Paige will announce the 2004 Blue Ribbon Schools next September, and the selected schools will be honored at a ceremony in Washington D.C.