Things are not easy for Cornell School District.

The district is tiny, with an enrollment of 699 in grades K-12. Its children are disadvantaged, with 65 percent of them qualifying for free and reduced lunches, and 21 percent have individual education plans because of learning issues.

And it's poor, with little tax base in blue-collar Coraopolis and Neville Island.

So when Cornell Elementary School was one of 13 in Pennsylvania nominated for a national Blue Ribbon Award, people there were a bit excited.

"I got e-mails from all over the county," superintendent Donna Belas said. "One person called us 'small but mighty.' My face hurt from smiling so much."

The award is based largely on standardized test scores and includes a category for schools in which at least 40 percent of the pupils qualify for free and reduced lunches -- a standard measure of financial need.

The district must file its formal application next month and maintain its test-score standards to get the Blue Ribbon in September.

"It's going to get our teachers pumped up to continue their work," Ms. Belas said.

Elementary principal Mike Lucas said the nomination shows "a lot of hard work by everyone," but in particular noted the district's focus on reading skills.

The district has partnered with the University of Pittsburgh to get a reading specialist in each classroom to work with children once a week, has expanded its Title I federal reading program from the primary grades to sixth grade and has had 80 children -- about 30 percent of its elementary enrollment -- attending an after-school tutoring program that has been running for the last five years.

Mr. Lucas also said being small actually helps, at least at the elementary level.

"We're able to prioritize kids," he said. "Kids don't fall through the cracks here because the other kids and the teachers won't let them fail."

Ms. Belas also credited the district's teachers for taking advantage of training opportunities, getting a wide range of instruction "to be able to work with all kids at all levels."

"This didn't happen over one year," Ms. Belas said. "There's been a lot of consistency."

But to have it pay off is gratifying, to say the least.

"To be one of 13 nominated out of thousands in Pennsylvania, we're celebrating just to be part of it," she said.

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