Aiken Students Celebrate Blue Ribbon Award

Aiken Elementary students were feeling a little blue Tuesday morning, but their mood was far from sad.

Aiken was named a 2011 National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education, and staff and students were decked out in blue to celebrate.

Students wore blue T-shirts, blue hair and blue face paint.  A launch of more than 200 blue balloons highlighted the celebration.

“This has not happened overnight,” said Principal Bobbi-Ann Barnes during a presentation after the balloons were launched. “This has been a long, long journey for all of us.”

Barnes said she found out last December that Aiken had been invited to apply for Blue Ribbon distinction. The application process was grueling, she said, and required school administrators to gather information and write narratives about the school and its programs. They only had a few months to complete the application, which was due last February.

In September, Barnes found out the school had achieved Blue Ribbon status. She and teacher Jennifer Harke went to Washington, D.C. last week to receive the school’s official award.

Keystone Oaks School District Superintendent William Urbanek said all of the schools in the district offer the same quality of education. It’s just a matter of time, he said, before the other schools receive the same distinction.

“Whenever you have the recognition, it gives you the validation you’ve known for years,” he said. “We couldn’t be happier, but this comes as no surprise.”