We’ve become accustomed to individual schools in the county earning state and national honors for outstanding achievement, but it’s rare that all five of the county’s high schools would be honored for excellence at the same time.

Yet that is exactly what happened last week when state School Superintendent John Barge announced that all five of the county’s high schools had earned the status of STEM Achievement Schools.

The statewide recognition acknowledges superior achievement by advanced placement students in the areas of math and science. These are fields educators have identified as needing special emphasis and focus in the nation’s classrooms.

The STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) honor is awarded to schools based on the test scores of students taking advanced placement math and science classes. The county’s five high schools were among 87 statewide earning the recognition.

"When you see all five schools being recognized, it really shows that … all schools across the district are really stepping up to the challenge," said county school superintendent Buster Evans.

Math, science and their related fields are areas in which the high school students of today are going to have to excel if the nation is to continue to be a leader in the increasingly competitive global economy. It is encouraging to know that our local high schools are preparing students to excel in those particular subject areas today so that they will be prepared for the workplace of tomorrow.

Congratulations to all involved for a job well done.