THE PURPOSE OF THE BLUE RIBBON SCHOOLS CONTRACT IS TO (1) TO HONOR AND BRING PUBLIC ATTENTION TO AMERICAN SCHOOLS THAT ACHIEVE HIGH ACADEMIC STANDARDS OR HAVE SHOWN SIGNIFICANT ACADEMIC IMPROVEMENT OVER FIVE YEARS; (2) TO MAKE AVAILABLE A COMPREHENSIVE FRAMEWORK OF KEY CRITERIA FOR SCHOOL EFFECTIVENESS THAT CAN SERVE AS A BASIS FOR PARTICIPATORY SELF-ASSESSMENT AND PLANNING IN SCHOOLS; AND (3) TO FACILITATE COMMUNICATION AND SHARING OF BEST PRACTICES WITHIN AND AMONG SCHOOLS BASED ON A COMMON UNDERSTANDING OF CRITERIA RELATED TO SUCCESS.