METAIRIE, La. (WGNO) — Holly Rogers has a class full of fifth graders on her hands.
Ten and eleven-year-old Louisiana kids who love to learn.
They’re so good at learning, their school is one of the best in America.
WGNO Good Morning New Orleans features reporter Bill Wood says Airline Park Academy for Advanced Studies just got named a National Blue Ribbon School for 2021.
That means it’s one of the best in the USA.
It’s one of nine schools in Jefferson Parish to get the national nod.
Bill Wood asked fifth-grader Maci Palma to tell him what she really thinks about homework.
Maci Palma says, “I really don’t like homework, it takes up our time and it really is, really awful.”
But in the end, Bill wonders and Maci says, “Once you’re finished, it’s freedom.”
At Airline Park Academy, even the principal has had homework to do.
She’s Tiffani Jackson.
Her job lately included writing ten essays.
Ten of them.
She had to write and send them to the Department of Education to explain why the school she leads is simply the best.
The essays were good.
Well, really they were great.
After the principal told the success story of her 400 students and 25 teachers, Airline Park Academy got named as one of America’s best.
Principal Tiffani Jackson says, “It means that we’re very honored and our hard work is finally paying off.”
Back in the fifth grade with fifth-grader Vedant Ramesh.
He’s a bit busy.
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He’s living his own best blue ribbon life.
Bill Wood wonders about the pressure on a ten-year-old fifth-grader in one of the best schools in the USA.
Vedant Ramesh says, “Take, for example, we’re doing a project, okay? Say we all fail, that would be pretty bad, wouldn’t it and that wouldn’t be what it takes to be a Blue Ribbon school, but if we put in the hard work, then we can be a Blue Ribbon school.”
Turns out a Blue Ribbon is not just as good as gold.
Blue, is even better.