In Hawaii, Ka’elepulu and Maunawili Elementary Schools have both demonstrated academic achievements that go beyond statewide averages. Ka’elepulu piloted the state’s first ‘Choose Love’ social-emotional learning program and Maunawili is helping students in grades 4-6 learn about different career paths with its Career & Technical Education (CTE) pathways program.

For their accomplishments, the two schools were among 353 public and private elementary, middle, and high schools across the nation to be named 2023 Blue Ribbon schools by the U.S. Department of Education. The schools were selected based on overall academic performance or progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups.

“Congratulations to our students, teachers, staff and families at Ka’elepulu and Maunawili for their collective work in creating safe, welcoming, and high-achieving learning environments where students thrive,” said Hawaii State Department of Education Superintendent Keith Hayashi in a news statement.

This is the second designation for Ka’elepulu, which was recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School in 2015.

The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program honors public, private, and parochial schools in one of two performance categories:

• Exemplary High Performing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools as measured by state assessments on nationally normed tests.
• Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools in closing achievement gaps between a school’s student groups and all students over the past five years.

In addition to schools in Hawaii, Blue Ribbon honors were also presented to big-city schools in Albuquerque, Anchorage, Cincinnati, Dallas, Washington, D.C., Fresno, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Miami, San Diego, San Francisco, St. Louis, Tulsa, and Kentucky’s Jefferson County (Louisville) and Fayette County (Lexington).