WALLA WALLA - Blue Ridge Elementary is among 47 schools in the state ranked as persistently low-achieving, qualifying it for federal grant money meant to turn around performance through drastic changes.

On Friday, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction released the names of state schools that qualify for $17 million from the U.S. Department of Education through School Improvement grants. Each school could receive between $50,000 and $2 million each year for three years as part of the program.

Walla Walla Public Schools is seeking $379,000 of the eligible grant money to implement its changes, said Linda Boggs, assistant superintendent in charge of curriculum, in a news release.

The School Improvement grants are part of the federal Title I program that provides money to districts and schools with high numbers or high percentages of low-income children. Several factors were used to rank the schools, including reading and math scores over the last three years.

Blue Ridge test scores on reading, writing and math have fluctuated over the years, but the school has continuously scored below other elementary schools in the district.