The Michigan Department of Education has named 16 public schools in the state as Blue Ribbon Schools a couple of months after the national program quietly ended under President Donald Trump.
The state announced the schools on Thursday, Oct. 30, as nominated by MDE to receive the honor for being “exemplary high-performing schools” in 2025. According to a news release, they are:
- Amerman Elementary School, Northville, Northville Public Schools
- Angell School, Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor Public Schools
- City High Middle School, Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids Public Schools
- Countryside Elementary School, Byron Center, Byron Center Public Schools
- Forest Grove Elementary School, Hudsonville, Hudsonville Public Schools
- Hamilton Elementary School, Hamilton, Hamilton Community Schools
- Jeffers Elementary School, Spring Lake, Spring Lake Public Schools
- Lakewood Elementary School, Holland, West Ottawa Public Schools
- Novi Woods Elementary School, Novi, Novi Community School District
- Orchard Primary School, Almont, Almont Community Schools
- Plymouth Scholars Charter Academy, Plymouth
- Wass Elementary School, Troy, Troy School District
- Weidman Elementary School, Weidman, Chippewa Hills School District
“Students and parents, school staff, and local communities deserve to be honored for the outstanding achievement by our Blue Ribbon Schools,” Interim State Superintendent Sue Carnell said in a statement.
“These schools serve as an example to others and, at the same time, are representative of the accomplishments and progress at schools around the state.”
In addition to the public schools, MDE released three private schools being recognized as Blue Ribbon honorees in step with nominations from the Council for American Private Education. Those are:
- All Saints Catholic School, Canton
- Bishop Foley Catholic High School, Madison Heights
- St. Paul the Apostle School, Grand Rapids
In the past, the U.S. Department of Education has released National Blue-Ribbon designations to honor schools that excelled in academic performance and took significant steps to close achievement gaps.
However, in late August, the Trump administration suddenly ended the program months after nominations were submitted and just weeks before the final list would typically be released.
On Thursday, MDE spokesperson Bob Wheaton confirmed the department previously nominated Blue Ribbon Schools to be nationally recognized.
“This year the nominations were made,” he said via email, “but after that happened, the U.S. Department of Education ended the federal recognition, saying it was part of their efforts to return education to the states. So, we want to recognize these schools and are doing that.”
The State Board of Education will formally recognize the schools at members’ Nov. 13 meeting, which is slated for 9:40 a.m. at the John A. Hannah Building in Lansing. It’ll be livestreamed online at Michigan.gov/MDE.
In her own statement, Board President Pamela Pugh said state school officials wanted to make sure schools would “get the recognition they deserve.”
“These Michigan schools are worthy of national attention, so it is very disappointing that Blue Ribbon Schools no longer will be honored by the U.S. Department of Education,” she said. “State board members are looking forward to learning more about the successes of these schools.”
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