Five Alabama schools were recognized as National Blue Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday.

The schools are among 353 national recipients, which were honored for their academic performance, or for progress in closing achievement gaps. The Blue Ribbon award is the highest national honor given by the U.S. Department of Education to a school.

Alabama’s 2023 National Blue Ribbon Schools include:

• Cordova Elementary School, Walker County

• Mt. Carmel Elementary School, Madison County

• Creek View Elementary School, Alabaster City

• Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School, Jefferson County

• Skyline High School, Jackson County

Skyline High School and Cordova and Creek View Elementary Schools are Title I schools, meaning more than 40% of their students are economically disadvantaged.

Read more: How Cordova helps children beat the odds in math.

The five schools will join 125 Alabama Blue Ribbon schools that have received the honor since the program began in 1982.

“The honorees for our 2023 National Blue Ribbon Schools Award have set a national example for what it means to Raise the Bar in education,” U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a news release. “The leaders, educators, and staff at our National Blue Ribbon Schools continually inspire me with their dedication to fostering academic excellence and building positive school cultures that support students of all backgrounds to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.”

Nominated schools complete an extensive application describing their school culture and philosophy, curriculum, assessments, instructional practices, professional development, leadership structures and parent and community involvement.

They are awarded based on student and subpopulation scores in state or nationally normed assessments, as well as graduation rates.

Officials said Blue Ribbon Schools also share core elements, such as a “vision of excellence,” innovative teaching and learning, community involvement and data-driven teaching practices.

All Alabama recipients were recognized as “Exemplary High Performing” schools, which have their state’s highest high school graduation rates and the highest achieving students in English and mathematics.

Of this year’s recipients, 313 were public schools and 40 were non-public schools.

More information about the program can be found at www.nationalblueribbonschools.ed.gov.