EDITORIAL
'Blue ribbon' schools compete with the best

With all the talk these days of school "reform" and the need to boost the sagging performance of many Hawai'i public schools, it is sometimes easy to forget our many successes.

That lesson was driven home this week when two O'ahu public schools, Momilani Elementary and Liholiho Elementary, were among just 250 schools across the country honored as "blue ribbon" schools by the federal government.

This year the blue ribbon honor is tied to success in meeting new academic standards under the No Child left Behind law.

Momilani and Liholiho face the same problems of mixed- income student bodies, facilities repairs and other challenges that face virtually every public school.

What they have is dedicated principals, committed teachers and strong community and parental involvement. It is a recipe that should be emulated elsewhere.

Congratulations.