Greenwich’s New Lebanon School Named 2026 CT Blue Ribbon School

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Governor Ned Lamont and CT Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker on Thursday announced that Greenwich’s New Lebanon School is one of six in the state selected by the Connecticut State Dept of Education as 2026 Blue Ribbon Schools in recognition of demonstrating high levels of academic excellence, creating inclusive and supportive learning environments, and advance strong outcomes for all students.

New Lebanon School, built new in 2019, currently enrolls 363 students.

“Congratulations to these Connecticut schools on being selected for this honor and earning this well-deserved recognition,” Governor Lamont said. “The success of these schools is an example of why Connecticut’s public schools continue to rank among the best in the nation and why we must continue supporting the educators and school communities working on behalf of our students every day.”

“The Connecticut State Department of Education congratulates the six schools recognized as 2025-26 Connecticut Blue Ribbon Schools,” Commissioner Russell-Tucker said. “This distinction reflects what is possible when educators, students, families, and communities come together to create supportive learning environments, showcase innovative practices that support student success, and demonstrate a strong commitment to unlocking lifelong potential for all students. Congratulations to this year’s award winners for their hard work, dedication, and continued commitment to excellence.”

The Connecticut Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a state-operated initiative that replaces the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program, which was discontinued by the U.S. Department of Education in 2025 after honoring schools on a nationwide basis during the previous four decades. In response to the termination of the national program, Governor Lamont and Commissioner Russell-Tucker launched this state-operated program last year, stressing the importance of recognizing and highlighting schools that are excelling in academic success.

The honorees were identified by CSDE using 2024-25 results from the Next Generation Accountability System. All selected schools were designated as Schools of Distinction. There are two categories of schools for this award—Exemplary High Performing and Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing. Five of the six schools were recognized in both categories.

CSDE will host an awards recognition for the six schools on June 9, 2026, in West Hartford.

Great Oak Elementary School (Oxford) – Exemplary High Performing and Achievement Gap Closing

Oxford is a community with four schools. Great Oak Elementary School is the only school serving students in Grades 3-5. There are 380 students enrolled, one third of whom are students with high needs.

Great Oak Elementary has earned School of Distinction status for the last four consecutive years. In 2024-25, the school earned all possible accountability points for academic achievement in ELA, math, and science for the all students group. For every subject, the performance index exceeded the state target of 75. At the same time, students with high needs earned their highest scores on this measure in all subjects since implementation of the accountability system in 2014-15.

In addition to strong achievement, Great Oak also was identified as a School of Distinction based on academic growth in math for all students and for growth in ELA for students with high needs. In both cases, academic growth was among the top 10% of elementary and middle schools statewide.

When asked about the school’s success, the superintendent noted that under the principal’s leadership, school staff are increasingly laser-focused on student needs. Teachers strive to personalize instruction to the greatest extent possible using all available data so that every student receives exactly what they need to learn and grow academically. This has been a key part of the success at Great Oak.

Nathan Hale School (Meriden) – Exemplary High Performing and Achievement Gap Closing

Nathan Hale School is one of 8 elementary schools serving the Meriden community. There are 463 students enrolled in Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 5. The majority of students (83.8 %) are students with high needs. Since 2018-19, Nathan Hale School has earned School of Distinction status four times.

In 2024-25, the school earned its highest accountability index to date by earning 84.4% of possible points. This placed Nathan Hale among the top 10% of elementary and middle schools statewide. This level of performance was driven in part by ELA and math achievement for all students and students with high needs being the highest reported for this school since initial implementation of Smarter Balanced in 2014-15. In terms of academic growth, Nathan Hale School achieved distinction in every available category.

Nathan Hale joins John Barry School (2019) and Israel Putnam School (2024) as the third Meriden school earning the Blue Ribbon School award over the last ten years. This is a point of pride for the district. Meriden’s efforts during this time to adjust its master schedule, implement additional accountability and support for teachers, and align efforts across schools has paid dividends.

New Lebanon School (Greenwich) – Exemplary High Performing and Achievement Gap Closing

New Lebanon School is one of 11 elementary schools in Greenwich enrolling 363 students in Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 5. Nearly 60% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. New Lebanon’s overall accountability index earned in 2024-25 was 89.3, above the state target of 85 and their highest to date. The school’s performance has been improving steadily in recent years. They earned School of Distinction status for the first time in 2021-22 and repeated their performance in 2023-24 and 2024-25.

Academic achievement and academic growth were particularly strong for New Lebanon School in 2024-25. In terms of academic achievement, the school earned its highest subject performance index scores since 2014-15 in all subjects for all students and students with high needs. Academic growth in mathematics also was the highest to date for all students and students with high needs. On average, students were achieving at least 86% of their growth targets in mathematics.

The accountability system includes a measure of growth toward English language proficiency for English/multilingual learners. About 12% of students at New Lebanon School are English/multilingual learners. Their growth on oral and literacy measures are among the top 2% of schools statewide. Students are on average achieving 84.2% of their oral targets and 96.5% of their literacy targets. These values are also the highest reported to date for this school.

When asked about the school’s success, the district administration noted the principal’s strong instructional leadership coupled with the staff’s intense focus on providing students with highly focused support during the school day while offering extensive arts programming. Everyone in the building feels a great sense of pride in what they do and the students are excited to go to school.

Ridgefield High School (Ridgefield) – Exemplary High Performing

Ridgefield High School (RHS) enrolls 1375 students in Grades 9 through 12. The school has demonstrated consistently high performance over many years. The school’s accountability index, which is a percentage of possible points earned across all available indicators, has exceeded the state target of 85 since the inception of the Next Generation Accountability System in 2014-15 and was designated a School of Distinction in 2024-25.

Of all schools statewide serving students in Grades 9 through 12, Ridgefield is among the top 5 percent of schools in terms of low chronic absenteeism rates. Fewer than five percent of students were chronically absent in 2024-25.

Indicator 6 of the accountability system measures demonstration of college and career readiness. The indicator includes test-based measures (i.e., Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, SAT, ACT) as well as earning at least three college credits before high school graduation. Eighty-six percent of students in Grades 11 and 12 demonstrated college and career readiness in 2024-25, the highest percentage to date. RHS students are choosing the challenge of dual credit courses. In 2018-19, students successfully completed 165 dual credit courses. The course count increased to 677 in 2024-25. More than 70 percent of the RHS senior class in 2024-25 earned at least three college credits before graduating, leading to potential tuition savings, accelerated graduation timelines, and an easier transition to college.

In 2025-26, the RHS community began the design and implementation phase of their “Thrive Together” initiative, a student-led wellness campaign for students and teachers. The project leadership team through stakeholder input identified “balance” as their single defining principle recognizing that working and learning in a culture of high performance cannot be successful without prioritizing wellness. RHS is developing and promoting strategies to achieve necessary balance. While the program is new, the State Student Advisory Council on Education (SSACE) has already named the program a statewide winner of the “2026 Challenge to Educational Citizenship Award.”

Webster Hill School (West Hartford) – Exemplary High Performing and Achievement Gap Closing

Webster Hill School is one of 11 elementary schools in West Hartford. There are 349 students enrolled in Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 5. Students with high needs comprise 46 percent of the student population. Approximately 17 percent of students are English/multilingual learners.

Webster Hill has earned School of Distinction status for the last three years. Overall performance as measured by the accountability index has steadily improved from 2018-19 to 2024-25, increasing from 62.0 to 84.1. When comparing student achievement in ELA, math, and science in 2021-22 through 2024-25, achievement for all students and students with high needs is consistently higher than in prior years.

Webster Hill students have also demonstrated strong academic growth in ELA and math. In 2024-25, students achieved on average 84.1 percent of their ELA growth targets and 86.7 percent of their mathematics growth targets. Students with high needs achieved 83.1 percent of their ELA growth targets, putting Webster Hill among the top five schools serving a similar grade range.

In 2018-19, the principal recognized there was work to do to get Webster Hill to meet its full potential. The improvement journey was driven in part by the instructional math coach who led grade-level teams of teachers through a process that ensured Tier 1 instruction was consistently rigorous and aligned across classrooms. The Superintendent praised the principal as someone who effectively engages with the community and fosters partnerships. She “developed a shared vision around championing the power of high expectations, strong instructional practices, and the knowledge that ALL students can achieve at high levels and achieve mastery of essential standards.”

Western CT Academy of International Studies Elementary Magnet School (Danbury) – Exemplary High Performing and Achievement Gap Closing

Western CT Academy of International Studies Elementary Magnet School (WCAIS) is an interdistrict magnet school currently serving students from Brookfield, New Fairfield, Danbury, New Milford, Newtown, Redding, Bethany, Ridgefield and Waterbury. WCAIS has earned School of Distinction status in five of the last six years.

In 2025-26, the overall accountability index was 85.7, above the target of 85 and among the top ten percent of elementary and middle schools statewide. The school also exceeds achievement targets for all students in mathematics, English language arts (ELA), and science meaning that on average all students are performing solidly within the level described as “meets the achievement standard” on Smarter Balanced and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) assessment.

Fifty-five percent of students at WCAIS are students with high needs, which includes students with disabilities, English/multilingual learners, and students from low-income families. In 2024-25, students with high needs demonstrated strong growth in ELA and math relative to all schools statewide, earning the school distinction status in each of those categories.

The administration credits their success to a combination of strong committed educators, robust intervention for students who need support, and a culture of high expectations for all.