KENNEBUNK — It was a sea of blue at Sea Road School in Kennebunk on Friday, as students, faculty and staff gathered to celebrate the school’s recent distinction as a National Blue Ribbon school. 

In October, three Maine schools were named 2016 National Blue Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education. Falmouth Middle School and Reeds Brook Middle School in Hampden were also awarded the designation this year. 

The distinction is the highest award bestowed upon elementary, middle and high schools across the country, and SRS is the second blue ribbon school in Regional School Unit 21, which serves Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel. Kennebunkport Consolidated School was designated in 2010.

“Today, we have all of you being recognized in the top half of 1 percent of all schools in the United States,” said Katie Hawes, RSU 21 superintendent, to students at the assembly. 

Of the roughly 132,000 schools in the U.S., only 339 received blue ribbon status this year, and only 289 of those were public schools. According to the DOE, more than 7,500 schools across the country have been presented with the award over the years. 

Hawes was joined onstage by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Angus King, I-Maine, who voiced their delight for both the students at SRS and for what the award means for Maine schools. 

“I’m so impressed by how hard everyone works at Sea Road School in the classroom and in outside activities and in sports, music and the arts,” Collins said, talking to the students. “What impressed me the most was learning that you students really know how to make a difference in your community.” 

To be eligible for blue ribbon status, a school must first be nominated by its state DOE and then go through an extensive application process that focuses on a number of criteria including school climate, test scores, core curriculum, culture and uniqueness of the institution, Stephen Marquis, SRS principal, told the Journal Tribune in October. 

To Collins, what set SRS apart from other schools is its student body’s involvement in the school outside the classroom. Students at the fourth- and fifth-grade institution this year were successful in having plastic bags banned from school grounds, which Collins said was an example of community leadership. 

“Our state and our community and our whole country needs you to keep getting involved and your school did just that,” she said. 

King, who told the students at SRS they were “wicked cool,” said the blue ribbon designation was not the result of chance, but that the students exemplified what he called the “four P’s”: planning, partnership, perseverance and passion. 

The latter, he said, is what stands out at SRS.

“Passion is what really makes a difference in the world. It’s not taking ‘no’ for an answer, it’s pushing through when people tell you ‘no,’ and that’s what you have done,” he said. King also said that it’s unusual and extremely difficult to get two U.S. senators together in the same room, which was, “an indication of how important we think what you’ve accomplished was.”

Marquis closed the event’s formal ceremony by saying that — despite holding a doctorate — school wasn’t his favorite thing growing up, but that he continued to push forward just as those at SRS do. 

“School was not always my thing, and I know it’s not always going to be your thing. My own struggles formed my beliefs that children must have a safe learning environment to develop to their fullest potential,” he said. “I believe that all kids deserve a chance to succeed and have teachers and principals that inspire them to greatness.” 

Marquis, who recently received the Terrell Bell Award For Exceptional Educational Leadership, said in October that the school of about 240 students was nominated by the state based on its 2014- 2015 academic year test scores, but that the school was, “much more test scores.” 

He said ultimately it was the school’s culture and identity that make it so special. 

“We have touched the stars today and each day at Sea Road School,” Marquis said Friday. “My hope and dream for each of you students and staff is that you continue to touch and reach for the stars. 

“Thank you our students and staff, you certainly are blue ribbon worthy.”

— Staff Writer Alan Bennett can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 329 or abennett@journaltribune.com.