January 02, 2013 WHITEFIELD — The Whitefield Elementary School is one of six schools to be nominated as a 2013 Blue Ribbon School by the State of New Hampshire (NHDOE). The 340-student kindergarten-to-grade-8-school met the requirements to be named an "Improving School," according to a letter signed by Education Commissioner Virginia Barry, Ph.D. that WES received on Dec. 21.
Schools are either nominated in the "Improving School" category or the "High Performing" category.
The nomination is based primarily on the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) test scores, explained SAU 36 Interim Superintendent Dr. Harry Fensom in a Wednesday morning interview.
"The state Department of Education spent considerable time researching schools before we made a decision on our six nominations, so you should be very proud of the hard work you and your staff members are doing every day to improve student success and reduce the achievement gaps where they exist," Cmr. Barry explained.
WES principal Mike Cronin, teachers, and staff members must now undertake the labor-intensive documentation process required to complete the competitive process might lead WES to its being selected as one of the schools to represent the Granite State this Fall in Washington, D.C.
The NECAP scores on which the state based its nomination stretched back over a five-year period, the second-year principal pointed out.
"I've only been the principal during the last year (2011-2012); Ellen Turcotte was the principal for the prior four years," Cronin explained. "It's very important that the staff and I acknowledge that."
The nomination is a result of the concentrated efforts of teachers, staff, students, parents, community, as well as administrators — the District Leadership Team — who establish policies and work to upgrade the curriculum and our instructional practices, he said. "Without the support of the entire community, the Whitefield School would not have been placed in the 'improving' category with the possibility of being named a 2013 Blue Ribbon School," Cronin noted.
A North Country school did make the final cut in 2012 when the Lisbon Regional Middle School was selected as an "Exemplary Improving" school.
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