Austin, Texas - Today, Senator César J. Blanco virtually presented a certificate from the Governor and a Senate Resolution to six schools in El Paso County that were nominated as 2021 Blue Ribbon Schools. The presentation can be viewed at https://bit.ly/3x420vO.

The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program recognizes public and private elementary, middle, and high schools based on their overall academic excellence or their progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups. Now in its 38th year, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program has bestowed almost 10,000 awards to more than 9,000 schools, with some schools winning multiple awards. The coveted National Blue Ribbon School award affirms the hard work of students, educators, families, and communities in creating safe and welcoming schools where students master challenging and engaging content and is a widely recognized symbol of exemplary teaching and learning.

The six local schools are:

• Ramona Elementary School (Ysleta ISD)
• Vista Hills Elementary School (Ysleta ISD)
• Mitzi Bond Elementary School (El Paso ISD)
• Hawkins Elementary School (El Paso ISD)
• Lamar Elementary School (El Paso ISD)
• Clendenin Elementary School (El Paso ISD)

Senator Blanco issued the following statement:

This honor is a testament to hard work and dedication of everyone in each of the school districts. The superintendents and school board, principals, teachers, support staff, and the students and their families all excelled to make this possible. This was a real community effort and these schools made us proud.

The teachers at these schools haven proven that they have the ability to instruct nurture, and push our children to reach their potential. I’m sure that we can continue to expect great things from them in the years to come.

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