Congratulations to the North Harford Elementary School community for being named a Maryland Blue Ribbon School.
And it is the school community, not the bricks and mortar that house the students, faculty and staff for 180 days annually, that earned the honor.
"It takes a community to have a really, really good school," Nancy Reynolds, president of the Harford County Board of Education, said during Tuesday's celebration of the Blue Ribbon honor.
It takes a community and other things for a school to achieve Blue Ribbon status. The criteria for judging schools for the Blue Ribbon status includes overall standardized test scores, the level of academic achievement by low-income and special-needs students, parental involvement and community outreach programs.
North Harford Elementary was one of only six such schools in Maryland honored this year with Blue Ribbon status. In 2014, NHES was named a Maryland Green School for initiatives by the students to protect the environment, including a way station for migrating Monarch butterflies, after-school programs such as the fifth-grade STEM Club and its partnerships with nearby high schools.
Principal Lisa Sundquist remembered past members of the faculty, staff and students who contributed to North Harford's success. It was a fitting touch to the ceremony.
"Congratulations," Barbara Canavan, superintendent of Harford County Public Schools, told the assembled school community. "You guys worked hard. You deserve this celebration, and keep working as hard as you have been."
We second those comments.