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Terry McGowan suspected that there was a good chance that Hammond Middle was going to be honored as a National Blue Ribbon School.
But the principal of the Laurel school was still shocked when an e-mail arrived last week from U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's office notifying her that Hammond Middle was one of eight schools in the state and 314 schools in the country to be named 2009 National Blue Ribbon Schools. Resurrection-St. Paul School in Ellicott City was also honored. Hammond was named a Maryland Blue Ribbon School in December 2008.
"It was very hard not to say anything," she said. "I'm very excited for the school and the Laurel community. We tend to be off the beaten track here."
The selection committee homed in on the school's impressive record of student achievement.
At Hammond, 95 percent of the students scored at proficient or advanced levels in reading on the 2009 Maryland School Assessments, up 6 percentage points from 2007. In 2008, Hammond had a 99 percent pass rate for students taking the algebra high school assessment.
The school's 2008 MSA results were used as part of the criteria for the Maryland Blue Ribbon competition. That data showed that all student groups at the school were achieving at high levels. For example, 100 percent of the sixth-grade Hispanic students scored at proficient or advanced reading and math MSA levels. African-American sixth-graders scored 79.2 percent proficient or advanced in mathematics and 87.5 percent in reading. African-American seventh-graders scored 74.2 percent in math and 82.8 percent in reading. Eighty-one percent of the school's African-American eighth-graders scored proficient in math and 90.5 percent in reading.
"We have a very short time to make a difference in middle school," McGowan said. "These teachers do a great job to make the kids young men and women."
McGowan highlighted a number of efforts that have made her school successful, including: a mentoring program in which sophomores at Howard Community College meet weekly with Hammond students; another program that encourages seventh-graders to act as "big brothers and sisters" to sixth-graders; and staff members working with small groups of students to foster personal and academic growth.
"Our kids are just wonderful," said McGowan, who has headed the school for the past six years. "The staff really goes more than the extra mile. They stay after school. They personalize the learning experience so that every child feels good and is successful in the process."
Students and staff at the school welcomed the national recognition.
Craig Graf, a social studies teacher who has worked at Hammond Middle for the past 24 years, said that the entire school is "incredibly excited" to receive the national recognition.
"It is great to see that the whole school gets recognition," said the eighth-grade team leader. "They have been doing a super job."
Hammond is successful in part because of a combination of experienced teachers, dedicated parents, good students and a supportive administration, according to Graf.
"It's neat when this comes together," Graf said.
"We're all really proud," said Ellen McDaniel, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Laurel. "We were all really happy and shocked. We were all really happy about that."
Michael Sullivan, 13, an eighth-grader at the school from Laurel, said his fellow students work hard everyday.
"Our test scores show it," he said.
Bob Grady, 13, an eighth-grader from Laurel, said his parents weren't surprised that the school was honored. Grady's older sister matriculated through Hammond Middle.
"They've known for a while that the teachers are really great," he said. "They expected something like this. They were proud."
Diane D'Costa, 13, an eighth-grader from Laurel, said that she was surprised by the honor. "It wasn't anything out of the ordinary to make us win this award," she said. "It's what we do every day."
But the principal of the Laurel school was still shocked when an e-mail arrived last week from U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's office notifying her that Hammond Middle was one of eight schools in the state and 314 schools in the country to be named 2009 National Blue Ribbon Schools. Resurrection-St. Paul School in Ellicott City was also honored. Hammond was named a Maryland Blue Ribbon School in December 2008.
"It was very hard not to say anything," she said. "I'm very excited for the school and the Laurel community. We tend to be off the beaten track here."
The selection committee homed in on the school's impressive record of student achievement.
At Hammond, 95 percent of the students scored at proficient or advanced levels in reading on the 2009 Maryland School Assessments, up 6 percentage points from 2007. In 2008, Hammond had a 99 percent pass rate for students taking the algebra high school assessment.
The school's 2008 MSA results were used as part of the criteria for the Maryland Blue Ribbon competition. That data showed that all student groups at the school were achieving at high levels. For example, 100 percent of the sixth-grade Hispanic students scored at proficient or advanced reading and math MSA levels. African-American sixth-graders scored 79.2 percent proficient or advanced in mathematics and 87.5 percent in reading. African-American seventh-graders scored 74.2 percent in math and 82.8 percent in reading. Eighty-one percent of the school's African-American eighth-graders scored proficient in math and 90.5 percent in reading.
"We have a very short time to make a difference in middle school," McGowan said. "These teachers do a great job to make the kids young men and women."
McGowan highlighted a number of efforts that have made her school successful, including: a mentoring program in which sophomores at Howard Community College meet weekly with Hammond students; another program that encourages seventh-graders to act as "big brothers and sisters" to sixth-graders; and staff members working with small groups of students to foster personal and academic growth.
"Our kids are just wonderful," said McGowan, who has headed the school for the past six years. "The staff really goes more than the extra mile. They stay after school. They personalize the learning experience so that every child feels good and is successful in the process."
Students and staff at the school welcomed the national recognition.
Craig Graf, a social studies teacher who has worked at Hammond Middle for the past 24 years, said that the entire school is "incredibly excited" to receive the national recognition.
"It is great to see that the whole school gets recognition," said the eighth-grade team leader. "They have been doing a super job."
Hammond is successful in part because of a combination of experienced teachers, dedicated parents, good students and a supportive administration, according to Graf.
"It's neat when this comes together," Graf said.
"We're all really proud," said Ellen McDaniel, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Laurel. "We were all really happy and shocked. We were all really happy about that."
Michael Sullivan, 13, an eighth-grader at the school from Laurel, said his fellow students work hard everyday.
"Our test scores show it," he said.
Bob Grady, 13, an eighth-grader from Laurel, said his parents weren't surprised that the school was honored. Grady's older sister matriculated through Hammond Middle.
"They've known for a while that the teachers are really great," he said. "They expected something like this. They were proud."
Diane D'Costa, 13, an eighth-grader from Laurel, said that she was surprised by the honor. "It wasn't anything out of the ordinary to make us win this award," she said. "It's what we do every day."
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