Carver Named National Blue Ribbon School

TOWSON, MD — George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology received national recognition Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Education. The Towson institution was named a National Blue Ribbon School for 2016.

Nationally, 329 public and private elementary, middle and high schools were selected based on overall academic excellence or progress in closing achievement gaps; they are an "inspiration and a model," the U.S. Department of Education said in a statement.

"This is a tremendous honor," Carver Center Principal Karen Steele said in a statement. She said it was testament to the school's commitment to ensuring "every student possesses the knowledge, skills, passion, and attitudes to embrace new ideas to be courageous citizens in this dynamic world."

Carver Center is a magnet high school with special programs in acting, dance, carpentry, cosmetology, culinary arts, theater design and production, information technology/interactive media production, literary arts and visual arts. Members of Carver's class of 2015 received more than $13 million in awards and scholarships, and its high school assessment and SAT scores exceed county, state and national averages, according to a statement from Baltimore County Public Schools. It's been named a National Magnet School of Distinction, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts National School of Distinction in Arts Education and Arts Schools Network’s Outstanding Art School.

One other public school and one private school in Baltimore County also received Wednesday's National Blue Ribbon School recognition: Hereford High School in Parkton and St. Joseph School in Fullerton.

“Carver Center and Hereford are two great high schools by every measure, and I am thrilled that they are receiving this national recognition," Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent Dallas Dance said in a statement. "The strong principals at these schools, Karen Steele and Joe Jira, promote high academic expectations and create an atmosphere to empower teachers and students to excel."

Here are the 2016 National Blue Ribbon Schools in Maryland:

• Arnold Elementary School, Arnold
• George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology, Towson
• Hereford High School, Parkton
• North Harford Elementary School, Pylesville
• Our Lady of Perpetual Help School, Ellicott City
• Pasadena Elementary School, Pasadena
• Saint Joseph School, Fullerton
• Saint Patrick's Catholic School, Rockville
• Saint Pius X Regional School, Bowie
• White Marsh Elementary School, Mechanicsville

All National Blue Ribbon School award winners will be recognized at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., from Nov. 7-8.

Photo Credit: Baltimore County Public Schools.