Country School named Gold Star School

Country Elementary School earned a gold star on its report card.

Weston Public Schools on May 12 announced that the National Association of Elementary School Principals had honored Country School in its National Gold Star School Program, which recognizes schools where “learning communities work collaboratively to grow and demonstrate a commitment to continuous improvement of performance,” according to the organization’s website.

Principal Erin Maguire, now in her 10th year at Country School, said the Gold Star is a recognition of the staff’s dedication to educating all students.

“It is a collective effort. Country School really lives by a standard of collective ownership of students, and that really has been our driving force. It’s not just one teacher, student or one grade level, but we all own all of the students and we talk about kids all the time,” Maguire said. “I brought my faculty along; we’re going to be leaders in this work. We’re going to take risks. Things aren’t always going to work; we’re going to fail. Then we’re going to try again, but we’re always trying to do what’s best for kids … I feel so lucky to work in a place where everybody that comes to work every day genuinely wants to be here.”

The National Association of Elementary School Principals is a professional organization serving elementary and middle school principals around the U.S. and Canada.

This is the National Gold Star School Program’s inaugural year, and it comes a year after the federal government discontinued the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program, which began in 1982 and recognized exemplary schools around the nation.

“National Gold Star Schools represent what is possible when strong leadership, dedicated educators, engaged families, and supportive communities work together,” L. Earl Franks, the association’s executive director, said in a press release. “These schools are models of excellence and inspiration for school leaders and schools nationwide.”

Schools are selected by a committee composed of principals around the country, and schools must be nominated to be considered. Institutions are judged on three main pillars, each with subcategories, laid out by the association: an established culture, empowered people and optimal systems.

Country School was one of 57 Gold Star schools in the program’s first year, and the only one in Massachusetts.

In an announcement to the community, Superintendent Karen Zaleski said, “While this is a specific victory for the Country School team, it reflects the high standard of excellence we strive for across our entire district.”

Maguire said Country School embodies its new Gold Star reputation through what she called a three-bucket mindset: “take care of ourselves, take care of each other and take care of the community.” The school reinforces the approach with “Country CARES” – compassion, adventure, respect, effort and safety – stickers, which are given out to students as a “genuine acknowledgment” that their work in the classroom and the community is seen. The sticker is an image of Country School’s tree logo, which has now been updated with a gold star, of course.

“How we take care of each other and our students is what makes us a Gold Star school because it’s not exclusive to achievement,” Maguire said. “Academic achievement only comes when kids feel safe and supported and that their emotional needs are met. Then they can be here, comfortable, and take risks.”

The Gold Star is not the only accolade Country School has received in the last year. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education identified the school as one of 94, out of more than 1,500 in Massachusetts, to meet or exceed pre-pandemic achievement levels in English language arts and mathematics.

While the Gold Star is a tremendous honor for Country School, there is still plenty to do. From implementing the new literacy curriculum adopted earlier this year to developing more connections with the community, Maguire said the “work here is not finished.”

“Every year we get a little better,” Maguire said. “The culture of our schools is changing over a lot. We’re having a much more diverse population, so how are we expanding and connecting on that to make sure that everyone truly does feel accepted?”