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Christ Community Lutheran School Receives 2009 National Blue Ribbon School Honor from the U.S. Department of Education
School Receives Prestigious National Blue Ribbon School Designation for Helping
Students Achieve at the Highest Levels
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced 314 schools as 2009 National Blue Ribbon Schools. Each year, the
prestigious award distinguishes and honors select schools across the country for
helping students achieve at the highest levels. Christ Community Lutheran School is
one of two private schools in the state of Missouri to earn this year’s distinction. The schools – 264 public and 50 private from across the nation – will be honored at an awards ceremony on November 3 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC.
“Blue Ribbon Schools are models of student achievement from which others can take
inspiration,” Secretary of Education Duncan said. “These schools have shown that
all children can learn with appropriate supports. They are producing outstanding
results for their students, and serve as examples of consistent excellence that can
be a resource for other schools. They are places where improved teaching and
learning benefits every student, and where students are challenged to meet high
expectations with the active support of teachers, parents and the community."
The No Child Left Behind – Blue Ribbon Schools Program honors public and private
elementary, middle and high schools that are either academically superior or that
demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement to high levels. 314 public and
private schools achieved this status out of more than 120,000 public and private
schools in the nation. For private schools, the primary criteria to determine eligibility is for a school to be in the top 10 percent on nationally standardized
academic tests.
“This is an important day in the history of Christ Community Lutheran School,” said
Rob Cooksey, the school’s Executive Director. “CCLS is a school where excellence,
innovation, and Christian community merge to create a learning environment focused on the continuous improvement of each child. This recognition is an affirmation of the outstanding faculty and team environment created when the focus is less on teaching and more on learning.”
This is the second national award received by CCLS over the past year. Last year,
the school’s elementary principal, Janet Leet, received one of the nation’s top
honors in elementary and middle school education when she was selected by the
National Association of Elementary School Principals to receive the National
Distinguished Principals (NDP) Award.
Christ Community Lutheran School provides excellence in Christian education in
partnership with five area congregations: Concordia Lutheran Church in Kirkwood,
Glendale Lutheran Church in Glendale, Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in Brentwood,
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Crestwood, and The Lutheran Church of Webster
Gardens in Webster Groves. CCLS was established in 1973 and now enrolls over 500
students in preschool through eighth grade. The school welcomes children of all
faiths.