Webster Hill Elementary School in West Hartford is one of Connecticut’s six Blue Ribbon schools recognized at a ceremony at Conard on Tuesday.

By Ronni Newton

Representatives from the districts of Danbury, Greenwich, Meriden, Oxford, and Ridgefield joined a large contingent from West Hartford on Tuesday afternoon at Conard High School, for a celebration of Connecticut’s six 2026 Blue Ribbon schools.

For the past four decades, Blue Ribbon schools were recognized in each state as part of a national program, but when the U.S. Department of Education canceled that program in 2025, Gov. Ned Lamont and  Connecticut State Department of Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker wanted to continue to honor exemplary achievement and launched Connecticut’s own program – and was the first state to do so, Russell-Tucker said.

The list of schools being honored in 2026 was announced in May, and all were chosen because “they’re exemplary, high-performing, and they’re exemplary achievement gap-closing schools,” Russell-Tucker said Tuesday. “We will learn from them, and we are learning from them, what it takes to drive academic achievement. … Their success is not an accident,” she said, but rather the result of “hard work, smart investments, and the dedication of the entire education ecosystem.”

CSDE chose the schools using 2024-25 results from the Next Generation Accountability System – a system of 12 indicators that consider more than just test scores – and all selected schools were also designated as Schools of Distinction based on the categories of “Exemplary High Performing” or “Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing.” Five of the six Blue Ribbon schools achieved distinction in both categories. The 2026 schools, spread across the state, were chosen from among more than 1,500 schools and programs in the state and include:

• Great Oak Elementary School (Oxford)
• Nathan Hale School (Meriden)
• New Lebanon School (Greenwich)
• Ridgefield High School (Ridgefield)
• Webster Hill School (West Hartford)
• Western Connecticut Academy of International Studies Elementary Magnet School (Danbury)

Russell-Tucker also noted the upward trend statewide in achievement, attendance, and college readiness, sharing that in the first time in a decade, the most assessment results indicate improvement in all subjects, all grades, and among all student groups.

Mayor Shari Cantor welcomed officials to West Hartford, and noted that the achievement is more than a “snapshot in time of fifth grade or first grade. It’s all the work that happens all the way through every single year.” She said she’s grateful to the state for continuing the practice of recognizing schools for being high achieving as well as making progress in closing the achievement gap.

Erin Benham, vice chair of the State Board of Education, applauded the state’s leadership in continuing the Blue Ribbon recognition program.

“This recognition reflects the dedication of your students, your educators, your families, and your community,” Benham said. “You all represent the very best of public education in Connecticut, so welcome to the ‘Oscars of Education.'”

Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said the Blue Ribbon schools are from “all kinds of communities that represent different parts of our state.” She added that “while each school has its own story, they share some of the same qualities. And those qualities are a deep commitment to the students, a strong instructional leadership, and cultures built around high expectations, belonging, and supporting academic growth for every student.”

The Blue Ribbon schools focus not only on overall high results, Bysiewicz said, “but meaningful gains for individual students, and that is what we need. We need those high needs students to make really great progress as well.”

Connecticut schools overall are among the top in the country, said Bysiewicz, “and here, ladies and gentlemen, are the Oscar winners, the crème de la crème, the best of the best,” being celebrated for all who have made a difference.

Gov. Ned Lamont echoed Bysiewicz’s words. “We have some of the best schools in the country right here, and you’re the best of the best,” he said. “Every day I try to sing the graces of the state, and it always comes back to our education,” and that’s what’s keeping young families with children in the state.

Representatives from each of the schools had a chance to share their success stories – the strategies that have been implemented in recent years that led them to the recognition that was celebrated on Tuesday.

At Great Oak Elementary School in Oxford that included included personalized instruction with attention to every child to understand where and why there are learning gaps, continuous and collaborative learning for teachers, and using the right kind of data in the right way – themes that were also noted by many of the other school leaders.

Nathan Hale School is Meriden’s third Blue Ribbon school in the past 10 years. Principal Eric Rank said the school’s success can be traced to three key levers: “our people, our practices, and our culture,” he said.

“We share a common vision. We put students first, and we work together to solve challenges, celebrate successes.” Their practices revolve around “strong systems, structures, and accountability measures to ensure they remain consistent throughout our school,” he said, and they focus not only on what students need to learn, but how they learn best. The school’s culture focuses on ensuring “students and staff feel connected, valued, inspired,” and learning and exploration has been expanded outside of the classroom itself.

At New Lebanon School in Greenwich, Principal Daniel Russo said their mission is to make learning meaningful. “We’re a small neighborhood school with a big identity, many cultures, one community, ad with that a commitment to excellence for each and every student.” They’ve also encouraged learning outside the classroom, and in recent years have seen a 30% increase in students reading and doing math at grade level and gains on other standardized tests, with multilingual learners making some of the strongest gains. “But the real story isn’t the numbers. It’s what adults are doing each and every day to make those numbers possible,” the teachers who lean into the results.

“We also know that achievement is a team sport with families,” Russo said, and on “family Fridays” often more than 100 parents and caregivers join children in the classrooms to see firsthand how they are learning.

Ridgefield High School Principal Jacob Greenwood described an innovative scheduling change they implemented in the 2021-2022 school year, based on the principle of “belonging.”

It was a leap of faith, he said, but “I have profound conviction that if you built a system where every student, every day, finds authentic connection and belonging, they will show up,” he said. The 20-minute flex period that precedes the first period is a time students can meet with teachers, access supports, or participate in enrichment programs. There’s less stress, and students don’t need to be there – but they are.

Attendance is higher, chronic absenteeism fell below 5%, and in the 2024-2025 school year they achieved a 100% graduation rate with all 380 seniors walking across the stage.

Webster Hill is the third West Hartford school to achieve Blue Ribbon status (Whiting Lane and Bugbee received the recognition in the past), and has been a School of Distinction for the past three years.

Former Principal Melissa Behrens, who is now the director of elementary education for the district – and was herself a Webster Hill student growing up – said when she took over as principal in 2019 there were significant challenges. “Our math and literacy performance indices were below state targets, placing us among the district’s lowest performing schools. What was immediately clear, however, was that Webster Hill was rich in community, in love, and commitment.”

Whiting Lane had a similar demographic including a large population of high needs students and multilingual learners, and had achieved Blue Ribbon status, and Behrens said she used that success as an example. “We strengthened our understanding of standards, learned what it meant to teach to the highest level of those standards, and scaffolded strategically to provide all student access points.” They targeted instruction to the specific needs of each child, properly used data, supported teachers, and tracked impact. “We knew that a true professional culture shift had occurred when teachers began engaging in a little friendly competition over their students’ data,” said said.

“At the heart of our work was a simple and powerful belief: All students are capable of high levels of academic achievement. We very intentionally created the conditions to allow every child to thrive,” and momentum took hold. Rachel Sullivan, who was hired as literary specialist, has been a critical partner.

Maureen Lantner, who was interim principal during 2024-25, was also instrumental in continuing the momentum of excellence for Webster Hill, and Tony Davila, the current principal, is also carrying the momentum forward.

At Western Connecticut Academy of International Studies Elementary Magnet School in Danbury, they are “growing world leaders,” the principal said, leaders who will change the world for the better.

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