Saint Simon Parish School Named

2021 National Blue Ribbon School

On September 21, 2021, the U.S. Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona, recognized

Saint Simon Parish School as a 2021 National Blue Ribbon School.

Saint Simon School received this distinguished award for being an “Exemplary High Performing School,” which means the achievement of the school’s students in English language arts and mathematics places the school in the top 15 percent in the nation. Saint Simon Parish School is one of 23 private schools to receive the award in 2021, and this is the second time the school has been recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School.
National Blue Ribbon Schools
The U.S. Department of Education National Blue Ribbon Schools Program recognizes outstanding public and non-public schools and celebrates school excellence, turn-around stories, and closing subgroup achievement gaps. Now in its 39th year, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program has bestowed almost 10,000 awards to more than 9,000 schools.

The National Blue Ribbon School Program was the brainchild of the second Secretary of Education, Terrel H. Bell, named by President Reagan. Best known for commissioning the study of American education that resulted in A Nation at Risk, Bell created the National Blue Ribbon Schools Award in 1982 to bring public attention to the best schools in the United States and to facilitate communication and sharing of best practices within and among schools.

Saint Simon school highlighted the following areas in its application
COVID-19 Response
The ability to provide the fullest possible curriculum with both synchronous and in-person learning options.
An articulated COVID-19 safety plan developed by a committee of teachers, administrators, and staff, with input from parents with expertise, and executed by the staff and students.
Broad Curriculum
Challenging academics that are enhanced with extracurricular activities including athletics, robotics, community service, and the arts. The opportunity for students to explore a wide variety of interests.
Community Engagement
The collaboration of parents, teachers, alumni and parishioners to educate, inspire, and prepare students to make a difference. A partnership with parents that includes regular communications, town hall meetings, volunteer opportunities and a parent advisory board.
Student Support
A resource specialist, a counselor and a librarian who actively participate with teachers to support the academic and social/emotional needs of the students. Dedicated office hours each day in the middle school to provide student and teacher collaboration.
Teachers and Leadership
A staff of tenacious and dedicated teachers working together to execute the mission and exemplify the school wide learning expectations. A leadership team that works to support the staff and families with tools, training, communications, and funding to enable staff growth and an enriched educational environment.
Parent Quotes

“Saint Simon offered my children an excellent in-person education in safe environment and that provided my family a sense of normalcy in a very difficult time.”

“Saint Simon grows the whole child. I love that along with the amazing education they provide, they also expose their students to doing service for others, and practicing the SLEs with our S.A.I.N.T.S values in everyday life. The students have so many opportunities to learn in many different ways not just in the classroom. We feel blessed to have found this great school."

"We are so grateful to have had our children at Saint Simon throughout the pandemic. The teachers and staff went above and beyond to keep the students moving forward, whether online or in-person, academically and emotionally. I am so proud of our school!"

Saint Simon gave us one less thing to worry about during 2021. They managed to keep my child progressing academically with full synchronous virtual learning while also keeping him engaged socially.

“We felt so lucky to have St. Simon last year. It was not just school but the effort to have some fun when we were in full lock down – drive-through hot dog social and halloween parade, fun and funky Friday theme days, and morning virtual assemblies.”

"Saint Simon put a lot of effort into being welcoming and helpful to students. I was very nervous about high school, but as a freshman I felt very prepared."

"Our experience at Saint Simon during 2020/2021 made me feel so blessed. Not only did they offer both distance and in-person learning, but tried to keep the fun like drive-thru parades and Funky Fridays."