Since 1982, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program has recognized public and private schools based on their overall academic excellence or progress in closing the achievement gap among student subgroups. Each year the U.S. Department of Education celebrates the achievements of these great American schools. Throughout its 38-year history, the program has recognized over 9,000 schools and this year, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program recognized 367 schools nationwide.
Of the 367, 47 honorees are schools serving a Hispanic student population ranging from 40 to 100 percent located in 14 states and the District of Colombia.
Hispanics make up 26.8 percent of all K-12 public school students and 11.3 percent of all private school students. These National Blue Ribbon Schools are leading the way in preparing Hispanic students for academic success. The White House Hispanic Prosperity Initiative (Initiative) celebrates each one for this national recognition. The Initiative congratulates the administration, staff, teachers, families, and communities that collaborate to ensure Hispanic students are succeeding. These schools are models for other schools with a high or growing Hispanic population on achieving excellence in academic achievement and closing academic gaps. The variety of programming within these schools demonstrates that when students are placed in the education setting that best fits them, excellence follows. The Initiative looks forward to further highlighting these schools and sharing their success.
The 2020 National Blue Ribbon Schools with a high Hispanic student population are:
In addition, the Department annually recognizes outstanding school leaders from National Blue Ribbon Schools through the Terrel H. Bell Award. This award recognizes principals for their vision and collaborative leadership style that have transformed their schools. This year, the Department recognized 10 remarkable principals. Three of the principals were Latinas:
- Carmen Vargas-Guevara, South Street School, Danbury, CT
- Mayra Cruz, Oyster-Adams Bilingual School, Washington, DC
- Corrine Morris Saenz, Reilly Elementary School, Austin, TX
The Initiative congratulates these Latina school leaders for their achievements.