The Meadow Drive School in Albertson has a lot to celebrate. The school, one of seven schools in the Mineola School District, recently celebrated its 50 year anniversary with a golden achievement.

Meadow Drive Elementary School became one of only two schools on Long Island-five in the state-to be named a national "Blue Ribbon School" for 2004 by US Secretary of Education Rod Paige. Meadow Drive earned the award for its dramatic improvement of student performance on State tests, in accordance with No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation, scoring in the top 10 percent. Less than 300 schools were chosen for the honor nationwide.

"You are achieving our mission to ensure that every child learns and no child is left behind," Secretary Paige told Meadow Drive Principal Patricia Molloy. "You are fostering a climate of academic excellence, enabling your students to reach the highest levels of scholarship. I am honored to share this exciting time with you, and I congratulate you for your achievement."

The NCLB Blue Ribbon is awarded to schools that make significant progress in closing the achievement gap in education, in part by meeting Adequate Yearly Progress in reading and language arts, as well as math. Meadow Drive will be officially honored at the recognition events scheduled for November 4-5 in Washington, DC.

On Friday, Oct. 1, an anniversary celebration was held by Superintendent of Schools Dr. Lorenzo Licopoli, members of the board of education, Principal Molloy, students and parents at the school. Coverage of the anniversary celebration will appear in next week's Mineola American.