Only 279 public schools and 50 private schools in the U.S. — and only 26 in Texas — were singled out for 2016 National Blue Ribbon honors. Panhandle Elementary School is one of them. The 329 schools were named “exemplary high-performing” based on state or national assessment criteria. Each school has a minimum 25 percent economically disadvantaged population. Taylor Norvell, 29, is in his second year as principal at Panhandle Elementary.