U.S. education chief delivers award to Atlanta school

The Tigerettes had reason to cheer. Twirling batons and pompoms, they helped kick off the afternoon assembly at F.L. Stanton Elementary School before a stage that held U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, State Schools Superintendent Kathy Cox, Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall and their own principal, Marlo Barber.

• Other metro Atlanta Blue Ribbon Schools

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Kimberly Smith/ksmith@ajc.com

F.L. Stanton Elementary School Principal Marlo Barber left, receives a congratulatory hug from U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings as Barber holds up the certificate proclaiming the school one of a select group across the country to be named a No Child Left Behind-Blue Ribbon School.

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No one, not even Barber, knew what Spellings had come to say.

So when she took the stand to second the Tigerettes’ cheer — which went “Our school is great and we’re on top!” — she was just getting the crowd warmed up.

“You are one of the 2008 Blue Ribbon Schools!” she said.

The rows of children, who were seated obediently, many wearing neat polo shirts in the school’s colors with their hands folded on their laps, hollered approval. Barber seemed to do a little dance as she crossed the stage to receive the coveted certificate from Spelling.

Of about 700,000 schools in America, 320 were named 2008 No Child Left Behind-Blue Ribbon Schools by the US. Department of Education Tuesday. The government program designates public and private elementary, middle and high schools that show impressive academic growth and achievement.

So why did Spellings pick southwest Atlanta’s F.L. Stanton as the site to personally deliver the news?

Flanked by Cox and Hall during a media briefing following the announcement, she said she wanted to honor this school for its “terrific track record” as well as Atlanta’s educational leadership team. During her announcement, Spellings described Hall as a trusted adviser.

Nine Blue Ribbon Schools were named in Georgia, five of them in the metro area.

Barber and the principals of all the award-winning schools are invited to a ceremony in Washington this fall, and the schools will receive a Blue Ribbon flag to fly over their school.

“There’s an expression that says if you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door,” Spellings told the children, explaining that their school will be considered an example to others.

Before making the announcement, Spellings and other officials stopped in to visit Christi Giddens’ third-grade math class. In a lecture about organizing and interpreting data, fourteen lap topped-students watched various graphs on their screen.

They were comparing the size and population of various Georgia cities, and Giddens had a tough one about Atlanta for the class: “Which Georgia city has nearly twice as many people as Augusta, but it’s also nearly half its size?”

Cox, who on Friday night won $1 million on the TV game show, “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader,” asked, with a laugh, if Giddens could please repeat the question.

In addition to F.L. Stanton, other Atlanta-area winners are:

• Mabry Middle School in Marietta

• Livsey Elementary School in Tucker

• Milton High School in Milton

• Torah Day School of Atlanta

Other Georgia winners:

• Appling County Primary School, Baxley

• Centralhatchee Elementary School, Franklin

• East Central Elementary School, Rome

• Futral Road Elementary Charter School, Griffin

Source: U.S. Department of Education