Six Maryland schools today were selected as 2006 No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education.

The six elementary schools were the only Maryland schools nominated for the honor. They are:

"These honorees are indicative of the outstanding achievement taking place in Maryland public schools," said Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. "I applaud the students, faculty and administration of these successful schools and remain proud to support their consistent efforts to achieve excellence."

"Maryland's Blue Ribbon Schools serve as examples for our state and for rest of the nation," said State Superintendent of Schools Nancy S. Grasmick. "They exemplify high levels of achievement or dramatic improvement among economically disadvantaged students. They show everyone that we can close the achievement gap and raise the level of education in the state."

The National Blue Ribbon Schools program recognizes schools that make significant progress in closing the achievement gap or whose students achieve at very high levels. This year, 250 schools are being recognized for the honor.

The six Maryland schools were selected on the basis of national criteria. Four are in the top 5 percent of all schools in the state at their specific level (elementary or middle) as measured by Maryland assessments. Two are economically disadvantaged schools that demonstrated dramatic improvement on the state assessments over at least the past three years.