Congratulations to John D. Hardy Elementary School, 1 of 325 institutions across the country to earn honors from the US Department of Education as a National Blue Ribbon School.

The Education Department recognizes schools in 1 of 2 performance categories—Exemplary High-Performing Schools and Exemplary Achievement Gap-Closing Schools—based on all student scores, subgroup student scores, and graduation rates. Hardy earned its recognition in the first category.

The physical Hardy School is set to be rebuilt as part of Wellesley’s elementary school plan, and funding this project and the Hunnewell Elementary School rebuild are highlights of this fall’s Special Town Meeting.

Blue Ribbon awards have been doled out since 1982, and 4 other Massachusetts schools garnered them this year in addition to Hardy. Sprague Elementary School earned one in 2010.

Wellesley schools have also earned a green ribbon in recent years for strong sustainability practices. Might as well go for all the different colored ribbons at this point.

We’ve embedded the Hardy application below that impressed the US Education Department. In it, Hardy’s administration touts the school community’s diversity, including the fact that 11 different language are spoken. Coaching and volunteer programs that aid students and staff are among the unique programs Hardy points to in its application.