Blue ribbon Blue ribbon The blue ribbon is a symbol of high quality. The association comes from The Blue Riband, a prize awarded for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by passenger liners and, prior to that from Cordon Bleu, which referred to the blue ribbon worn by a particular order of knights. The spelling "blue riband" is still encountered in most English-speaking countries, but in the United States, the term was altered to "blue ribbon", and ribbons of this color came to be awarded for first place in certain athletic or other competitive endeavours (such as county and state fairs).
National Blue Ribbon Schools Program National Blue Ribbon Schools Program The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States government program created in 1982 to honor schools that have achieved high levels of student achievement or made significant improvements in closing the achievement gap among student subgroups. One-third of all schools nominated in any state must serve student populations of at least 40% from disadvantaged backgrounds. More than 8,000 schools have been honored as National Blue Ribbon Schools since the program's founding in 1982. In 1981, then-Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell commissioned a study of American education. The report, issued two years later