Hard work by teachers and students at Broken Arrow School is paying off.

Broken Arrow landed in the top 10 percent of the state in reading and mathematics assessments, serving at least 40 percent disadvantaged students.

Kansas State Department of Education Commissioner Alexa Posny is nominating Broken Arrow and four other Kansas schools for the No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Schools award program. Nominations will be sent to U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings.

Broken Arrow Principal Brian McCaffrey said teachers have worked hard at using different approaches to improve learning among students.

“There’s no one specific way that works for every child,” McCaffrey said. “You find different strategies when kids aren’t getting it and you find ways to make it so they do get it.”

Parents also play a key role in improving a student’s learning abilities, McCaffrey said, and teachers ask the parents for help.

“Parents do a great job of following through and carving out time at home so kids can have a place to study and help them with their studies,” McCaffrey said.

The nominations were selected by a committee of school administrators, staff members from previously honored NCLB Blue Ribbon schools, and representatives from the Kansas National Education Association, Kansas Association of School Boards and the Kansas Association of Secondary Schools. The committee reviewed the data on schools deemed to be dramatically improving and those achieving at high levels.

The final selection for the 2009 awards will be made in September.