Naples Bayside Academy was awarded the National Blue Ribbon Award by the Department of Education, along with 335 schools for its performance in academics and progress in closing achievement gaps, the Long Beach Unified School District announced Thursday.
The award is highly-sought after and stands as one of the most prestigious public educations awards in the country. Naples, a K-5 schools, will accept its awards on November 10 in a ceremony in Washington, D.C.
“This honor recognizes your students’ accomplishments and the hard work and dedication that went into their success,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said in a statement. “Your journey has taught you collaboration, intentional instruction, and strong relationships in school and with your community. You represent excellence – in vision, in implementation, and in results – and we want to learn as much as we can from you.”
Other LBUSD schools that have received the honor include Cubberley K-8 School, Rogers and Hughes middle schools, the California Academy of Mathematics and Science and Lowell, Twain and Prisk elementary schools.
“We’re so excited. We’ve been working really hard on this for four years,” said Naples Principal Beth Flynn in a statement. “It’s been a great team effort.”
Above, left: image courtesy of the U.S. Department of Education website.