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The Trump administration won’t be handing out any blue ribbons to schools this year.
As President Donald Trump seeks to scale back the federal role in education in key respects, Education Department officials told state education agencies on Aug. 29 that it was ending the longstanding National Blue Ribbon Schools program, which honors high-performing schools and schools that have successfully narrowed academic gaps between student groups.
Madi Biedermann, a spokesperson for the department, said in the letter that the move was “in the spirit of Returning Education to the States” — a common refrain from Education Secretary Linda McMahon as the Trump administration has slashed staff at the department and sought to reduce federal spending on education.
“State leaders are best positioned to recognize excellence in local schools based on educational achievements that align with their communities’ priorities for academic accomplishment and improvement,” Biedermann wrote. “Awards conceived by those closest to the communities and families served by local schools will do more to encourage meaningful reforms than a one-size-fits-all standard established by a distant bureaucracy in Washington, D.C.”
The decision appears to have been made abruptly: States had already nominated schools for the award. In fact, the deadline for states to sign off on their picks was just one week prior to the cancellation letter. In some cases states had informed schools that they had won, pending the official federal announcement.
The Alabama Daily News first reported the cancellation.
The Blue Ribbon program’s goal is to highlight standout public and private schools and share best practices across the country. Winning the award typically brings positive attention and news coverage to schools, and is a badge of honor that can help attract new students, recruit teachers, and boost private fundraising.
Biedermann said the department is still encouraging states to recognize the schools they nominated for the 2025 competition. But she added that states can now get creative and tailor their own recognition programs to celebrate exemplary schools in certain subjects, or focus on new areas, such as success in preparing students for the workforce and apprenticeships.
Raven Hill, a spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Education, said the state is exploring next steps, but the pride that comes from national recognition won’t be easy to replace.
“The schools that receive the Blue Ribbon recognition are our crown jewels,” she said. “It doesn’t matter how long ago a school was recognized, they carry that pride. We can revive our state program, but it would be difficult to replicate the prestige.”
Terrel H. Bell, President Ronald Reagan’s first education secretary, created the Blue Ribbon program in 1982. Bell famously commissioned the study that became “A Nation At Risk,” which raised alarms about the quality of American education and spurred various reforms. Reagan also wanted to eliminate the Education Department at the time.
There have been other attempts to get rid of the program, including in 1992 when Congress defunded the program, leading to the abrupt cancellation of the competition. Letters and phone calls poured into Congress, Education Week reported at the time, and funding was eventually restored.
National editor Erica Meltzer contributed reporting.
Kalyn Belsha is a senior national education reporter based in Chicago. Contact her at kbelsha@chalkbeat.org.
