The video above is from January 2016 when Tool Elementary was nominated for the Blue Ribbon School honor.
From staff reports
Malakoff ISD has now gone back-to-back.
The U.S. Department of Education announced Wednesday that Tool Elementary School is one of 26 Texas schools to earn Blue Ribbon recognition for 2016. There were just 329 campuses nationwide to be named Blue Ribbon School.
Malakoff Elementary School earned the designation in 2015.
“We are so proud of the teachers and students of Tool Elementary,” said Malakoff ISD Superintendent Randy Perry. “Tool Elementary is under the outstanding leadership of Mrs. Christal Calhoun, the campus principal. Tool Elementary has overcome great obstacles to become one of the top schools in the nation, with 70 percent of the Tool students considered economically disadvantaged. This campus reflects Malakoff ISD’s guiding principle that all students can learn and be successful.”
No other Henderson County school earned Blue Ribbon status this year.
Founded in 1982, Blue Ribbon Schools is a U.S. Department of Education program that recognizes public and private elementary, middle, and high schools where students perform at very high levels.
All schools were selected as exemplary high performing schools as measured by state assessments or nationally normed tests. Each school has an economically disadvantaged population of 25 percent or greater.
“I congratulate the teachers, administrators and staff members at each of these nationally recognized campuses in Texas,” said Commissioner of Education Mike Morath. “A strong commitment to successful student outcomes is evident throughout the school year at every National Blue Ribbon campus, past and present, across our state.”
Interview with Randy Perry