By Kyle Peveto, Staff Writer

Taylor Elementary School was named one of the best performing schools in Texas for the second year.

Taylor, which is located across East North 16th Street from Gardner and Sikes halls, was listed by the Texas Business and Education Coalition and Just for the Kids as one of the top 42 elementary schools in the state.

To qualify for the TBEC/ JFTK Honor Roll, middle schools must be rated exemplary or recognized, and elementary schools must be rated exemplary by the Texas Education Agency and at least 10 students in each grade and subject must be enrolled in the same school for three continuous years.

Other criteria include: reading and writing scores must be consistent, and students who move from Honor Roll schools must continue to do well in other schools. The entire list may be found at http://www.tbec.org.

Taylor has been rated exemplary for the last five years by the TEA.

“It’s an honor for the teachers to be chosen two years in a row,” said Cam Hurst, principal at Taylor.

IBEC and JFTK take the information off the TEA Web site to find schools that fit the criteria. Volunteer teams from TBEC then visit each school and make sure the school fits the criteria the organization has established for the honor roll.

Later in the school year, Hurst and Superintendent Michael Moehler will travel to Austin to receive an award from TBEC/JFTK.

ACU and Taylor work together often to assist one another. Taylor is allowing ACU to use its property as an intramural field, while many ACU students volunteer at Taylor. University students tutor and mentor Taylor students every year.

Taylor was the only area school chosen for the Honor Roll. The closest school that was chosen was Ridgelea Hills Elementary in Fort Worth.