District's largest private grant ever will revamp math and science learning in grades K-12
Atlanta, Ga., Oct. 30, 2007 -- The GE Foundation today awarded a $22 million College Bound District grant to Atlanta Public Schools, marking the largest private grant in the district's history. At Southside Comprehensive High School, more than 1,300 students, teachers, parents, administrators, community leaders and GE executives celebrated the award, designed to improve student achievement and increase college readiness through comprehensive school-business-community collaboration.
Bob Corcoran, President of the GE Foundation, the philanthropic organization of General Electric Company, presented the grant to Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Beverly L. Hall in front of an enthusiastic crowd that included GE Vice Chairman and President of Atlanta-based GE Energy John Rice; Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin; and the U.S. Secretary of Education's regional representative Dr. Anne Hancock.
The award culminates the GE Foundation's long history of working with Atlanta Public Schools. In 1995, the Foundation helped Southside with "Partners in Education," a volunteer program designed to improve academic performance of students. In 2002, the GE Foundation in 2002 awarded Southside Comprehensive High School a five-year, $1 million "College Bound" grant to increase its college entrance rate.
"Our connection with the Atlanta community is strong and this grant makes it even stronger," Rice said."Our employees are a significant resource for Atlanta's students. We are committed to helping them learning about engineering, science, math and technology. We want them to be competitive in the global work place. The better off they are today, the better off we all will be tomorrow."
Recognizing demands for the work force of the future, Superintendent Hall said the GE Foundation grant will help deliver her vision of a math and science curriculum that exemplifies best educational practices.
"The GE Foundation will play a key role in changing -- for the better -- the lives of 51,000 children who attend Atlanta Public Schools," Hall said. "Our children will learn math and science from real-life examples. As the world relies more and more on technology and analysis, hands-on experience is the best way to learn. We thank the GE Foundation for the opportunities this grant will allow-- not only over the next five years, but for the lifetime of our children."
The award is the fifth of its kind from the GE Foundation, which has invested more than $100 million in the College Bound District Program since 2005. Atlanta joins school districts in Louisville, Ky., Cincinnati, Ohio, Stamford, Conn., and Erie, Pa., as College Bound District grant recipients.
The GE Foundation launched the College Bound District Program in Sept. 2005 as an expansion of its College Bound program, which started in 1989. The expanded program aims to increase college-readiness and achieve systemic change across entire school districts.
Atlanta Public Schools will use its grant to develop a rigorous, system-wide math and science curriculum and provide comprehensive professional development for its teachers. Additionally, as part of the partnership, volunteers from GE Infrastructure and GE Energy will share their knowledge of technology, math and science in ways that will impart real-world knowledge and create change in all schools and all classrooms.
Through more hands-on instruction, students will learn from teachers and GE Volunteers as they work together on special mathematics and science projects involving real-world challenges.
While APS student performance in math and science has improved in grades 1-12 over the past seven years, overall student performance in math and science still lags behind other subjects. Improving these areas is a critical need for Atlanta Public Schools.
The College Bound District Program enables school districts to improve in six areas: curriculum, professional development, management capacity, constituency engagement, GE volunteers, and evaluation. For more information on the College Bound Program, go to http://www.ge.com/foundation.
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About Atlanta Public Schools
With more than 100 schools and centers and 3,500 teachers, Atlanta Public Schools is accountable for focusing its talents and resources on ensuring that students are successful in school and in life. The district envisions becoming one of the nation's top performing urban school district in which all students will become lifelong learners equipped with the appropriate skills and competencies to become contributing members of society.
About the GE Foundation
The GE Foundation, the philanthropic organization of the General Electric Company, works to strengthen educational access, equity, and quality for disadvantaged youth globally and supports GE employee and retiree giving and involvement in GE communities around the world.
About GE Energy
GE Energy, headquartered in Atlanta, is one of the world's leading suppliers of power generation and energy delivery technologies---providing a broad array of solutions for traditionally fueled plants as well as those driven by renewable resources such as wind, solar and biogas.
GE is Imagination at Work -- a diversified technology, media and financial services company focused on solving some of the world's toughest problems. With products and services ranging from aircraft engines, power generation, water processing and security technology to medical imaging, business and consumer financing, media content and advanced materials, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit www.ge.com.
Britta Kons
GE Healthcare Global Services
britta.kons@ge.com
1-203-400-1892