Buncombe County School receives National Blue Ribbon award for academic performance

McKenna Leavens, Asheville Citizen Times
Updated ·4 min read
Fairview Elementary School received a National Blue Ribbon, an award that recognizes a school's overall academic performance or progress in closing achievement gaps.
Fairview Elementary School received a National Blue Ribbon, an award that recognizes a school's overall academic performance or progress in closing achievement gaps.

ASHEVILLE - A Buncombe County elementary school is among only eight schools in North Carolina to receive a National Blue Ribbon, an award that recognizes a school's overall academic performance or progress in closing achievement gaps.

Fairview Elementary School, off of Charlotte Highway, received a 2023 Blue Ribbon award for being a high-performing school and for serving students of every background.

Fairview serves around 660 students in kindergarten through fifth grade, according to the school's website.

“This is a wonderful achievement for Fairview Elementary,” BCS Superintendent Rob Jackson said in a Sept. 20 news release.

“The award is a testament to the dedicated staff and exceptional parent and community support at the school. Their collaborative effort has created an environment where students thrive- a true reflection of our school system’s commitment to excellence in the classroom and beyond.”

The U.S. Department of Education recognized 353 schools as a Blue Ribbon School for 2023.

Each year, the federal agency honors the National Blue Ribbon Schools at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., where each school receives a plaque and flag, according to the National Blue Ribbon website.

Fairview Elementary has a long tradition of building a strong relationship with the community and is committed to the success of all students, the release said.

This award comes less than a year after data was presented on the concerning achievement gap numbers in county and city schools.

In Buncombe County Schools, 21% of Black students grades three to eight were considered proficient in math in the 2021-22 school year, compared to 61% of white students who were considered proficient — making that a 40-percentage point difference. In reading, 21% of Black students in the same grades were considered proficient in comparison to 57% of white students.

Buncombe County Schools demographics 2021-22 school year:

  • 65% of students were white.

  • 7% of students were Black.

  • 21% of students were Hispanic.

  • 1% of students were Asian.

Students file onto buses after their first day of school at W.D. Williams Elementary in Swannanoa August 28, 2023.
Students file onto buses after their first day of school at W.D. Williams Elementary in Swannanoa August 28, 2023.

Fairview Principal Bonnie Bolado said in a Sept. 20 news release that the school also puts a strong focus on the social-emotional well being of the students.

"Through whole school teamwork, the staff creates learning environments that encompass the whole child, leading to supportive classroom structures that propel learning forward," Bolado said in the release.

More: Social-emotional learning in Asheville City Schools; How does it impact students?

Fairview Elementary joins Pisgah and Emma Elementary, and Reynolds High School as Blue Ribbon Schools.

Fairview was one of four elementary schools that received a B grade on school performance from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction for the 2022-23 school year, with no elementary schools receiving an A grade.

Elementary schools are graded based on reading, math, science and English learner progress assessments. The state's education department has been assigning letter grades to schools since 2013, based on student performance. The grades are based on each school’s achievement score in certain subjects and each school’s academic growth. The total school performance score is used to determine a grade of A through F, according to the NCDPI website.

The grading is based on 80% of each school’s achievement score and 20% of each school’s students’ academic growth.

West Buncombe, Glen Arden and Weaverville elementary were alongside Fairview in the highest grades for elementary schools in BCS.

2023 North Carolina National Blue Ribbon Schools

  • Fairview Elementary School, Buncombe County Schools.

  • Jay M Robinson Middle School, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

  • W. R. Odell Elementary School, Cabarrus County Schools.

  • Highland School of Technology, Gaston County Schools.

  • Greensboro Academy, Greensboro Academy.

  • Lucama Elementary School, Wilson County Schools.

  • Beaufort County Early College High School, Beaufort County Schools.

  • Heyward C Bellamy Elementary School, New Hanover County Schools.

The program has given 10,000 awards to more than 9,700 schools, according to a Sept. 19 news release from the U.S. Department of Education.

Schools are recognized in either being high performing or "exemplary" in closing achievement gaps. This is based on all student scores, subgroup student scores and graduation rates.

Up to 420 schools may be nominated each year. The Department of Education invites nominations for the National Blue-Ribbon Schools award from the top education official in all states, according to the release.

More: Buncombe County Schools superintendent talks student safety, praises teachers

More: Asheville City, Buncombe County schools performance grades are in for 2022-23 year

McKenna Leavens is the education reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at mleavens@citizentimes.com or follow her on Twitter @LeavensMcKenna. Please support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Fairview Elementary receives National Blue Ribbon award