National Blue Ribbon School Program

An important part of the U.S. Department of Education, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program recognizes outstanding public and non-public schools. In identifying several hundred outstanding schools annually, the program celebrates some of the most skilled and effective educators in the country.
 
 The Award is both a high aspiration and a potent resource of practitioner knowledge. National Blue Ribbon Schools represent the full diversity of American schools: public schools including charter schools, magnet/choice schools, Title 1 schools, and non-public schools including parochial and independent schools. They are urban, suburban, and rural, large and small, traditional and innovative, and serve students of every social, economic, and ethnic background.

Using standards of excellence evidenced by student achievement measures and research-based indicators of school quality, the Department honors high-performing schools and schools that are making great strides in closing any achievement gaps among student groups.

National Blue Ribbon Schools are honored at an annual awards ceremony in Washington, DC, where each receives a plaque and flag to signify its exemplary status. These schools serve as examples for other schools throughout the nation and details of their achievements are shared on the U.S. Department of Education’s website.

The Diocese of Paterson Catholic Schools Office is proud to have five elementary schools recognized as National Blue Ribbon Schools:

Assumption School, Morristown

Rev. George A. Brown Memorial School, Sparta

St. Patrick School, Chatham
 
 St. Philip Preparatory School, Clifton

St. Vincent Martyr School, Madison