Southern High celebrates Blue Ribbon designation

Of the 1,600 schools in the state of Maryland, only six are named Maryland Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence each year. The designation comes from the Maryland State Department of Education, and the school that wins the honor has to meet a rigorous set of standards for student performance.

The rigors of meeting the criteria are so tough that no high school has won Blue Ribbon status in the past couple of years.

That streak ended in December when Southern High School in Harwood was named a Maryland Blue Ribbon School of Excellence.

Last Thursday, officials from the county and state came to the school to celebrate with...