[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 138 (Thursday, November 13, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1556]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         HONORING DORAL PERFORMING ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT ACADEMY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MARIO DIAZ-BALART

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 13, 2014

  Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Doral Performing 
Arts & Entertainment Academy and to congratulate the school on being 
recognized as a 2014 National Blue Ribbon recipient.
   The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program recognizes public and 
private elementary, middle, and high schools based on their overall 
academic excellence or their progress in closing achievement gaps among 
student subgroups. Every year the U.S. Department of Education seeks 
out and celebrates great American schools, and Doral Academy has earned 
that distinction.
   This is quite an accomplishment, and a testament to the commitment 
the school has shown to educating its students and providing them with 
the best faculty and resources to succeed. The school has truly taken 
its mission of preparing students, and instilling in them a belief in 
their own efficacy, seriously.
   Doral Academy opened its doors in 1999, and currently serves 2800 
students. Doral Academy believes that engaging families and communities 
contributes to greater academic achievement and to the improvement of 
the school as a whole. This model of engagement is predicated on three 
core beliefs: student achievement increases the more knowledge parents 
have about their children's school experience; greater involvement of 
families through non-academic channels still contributes to greater 
academic buy-in by all; and the more a school invests in a community, 
the more resources, support networks, and allies are available to 
bolster the health and vitality of the school holistically.
   Mr. Speaker, I am honored to pay tribute to Doral Performing Arts & 
Entertainment Academy for their tremendous service to its students and 
the tireless work of their faculty, and I ask my colleagues to join me 
in recognizing this remarkable school.

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