Contact: David Thomas
(202) 401-1579
RILEY ANNOUNCES $96.5 MILLION IN MAGNET SCHOOL GRANTS
U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley announced today that $96.5 million in federal support for magnet school programs has been awarded to 57 school districts in 24 states under the federal Magnet Schools Assistance Program.
The grants help school districts establish or expand magnet programs that are part of a school district's approved desegregation plan. They aim to reduce, eliminate or prevent minority group isolation in schools while strengthening students' knowledge of academic subjects through the use of special curricular programs designed to attract students of different backgrounds based on their interest in the subject matter of the program.
One-hundred-twenty-eight school districts competed for the three-year grants.
"The federal Magnet Schools Program complements state and local efforts to promote equal opportunity and a quality education for all students," Riley said. "Through our combined efforts, we can work to improve student achievement in math, science, history, English, foreign languages, art, music, or vocational skills."
Among the districts receiving grants, a variety of thematic programs are offered; for example: foreign language, elementary school lab science, visual and performing arts, telecommunications, computer science, environmental education, humanities, and literature.
Grant funds may be used to help pay for certified or licensed teachers and other instructional staff for the magnet program, to purchase equipment, books, and materials necessary to support the program, and for planning and promotional activities.
The Magnet Schools Assistance Program is authorized under Title V, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994.
NOTE TO EDITORS: Attached is a list of grantees.
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MAGNET SCHOOLS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM GRANT AWARDS
FISCAL YEAR 1998
| ALABAMA Montgomery City/County Board of Education Contact: John A. Eberhart (334) 269-3005 | $2,074,806 | |
| ARIZONA Phoenix Union High School District Contact: Rosalie Perez (602) 271-3152 | $672,623 | |
| CALIFORNIA ABC Unified School District Contact: Mary Sieu (562) 926-5566, ext. 2126 | $1,478,354 | |
| Berkeley Unified School District Contact: Catherine James (510) 644-6674 | $1,040,592 | |
| Long Beach Unified School District Contact: Carolyn Jensen (562) 997-8310 | $1,535,607 | |
| Los Angeles Unified School District Contact: Theodore T. Alexander, Jr. (213) 625-6933 | $2,510,344 | |
| Moreno Valley Unified School District Contact: Maribel Mattox (909) 485-5600, ext. 2243 | $1,991,371 | |
| San Diego Unified School District Contact: Patricia Ann Trandal (619) 293-8680 | $2,533,264 | |
| CONNECTICUT Capitol Region Education Council Contact: Mark D. O'Donnell (860) 524-4079 | $350,000 | |
| New Haven City School District Contact: Edward Linehan (203) 946-7415 | $2,412,995 | |
| FLORIDA Gadsden County School Board Contact: James Brown (850) 627-9751 | $893,493 | |
| School Board of Pinellas County Contact: Deidra Honeywell (813) 588-6539 | $1,736,255 | |
| Seminole County Public Schools Contact: Sherry O'Leary (407) 320-0458 | $2,523,078 | |
| The School Board of St. Lucie County Contact: Mary A. Bennett (561) 468-5256 | $1,799,666 | |
| The School District of Lee County Contact: Elizabeth Russell (941) 337-8246 | $1,566,635 | |
| The School Board of Miami-Dade County Contact: John Johnson, II (305) 995-1704 | $2,715,671 | |
| The School District of Palm Beach County Contact: Mary Helen Arbogast (561) 434-7351 | $2,400,488 | |
| ILLINOIS Decatur Public Schools District #61 Contact: Marla Robinson (217) 424-3255 | $491,364 | |
| INDIANA Indianapolis Public Schools Contact: June Rimmer (317) 226-4545 | $2,370,490 | |
| KANSAS Topeka Public Schools; USD 501 Contact: Betty Horton (785) 575-6191 | $464,958 | |
| KENTUCKY Fayette County Public Schools Contact: Louis E. Hughley, Jr. (606) 281-0252 | $1,820,924 | |
| LOUISIANA Monroe City School System Contact: George D. Cannon (318) 325-0601 | $1,339,136 | |
| St. John the Baptist Parish School Board Contact: Wilbert Oemond (504) 536-1106 | $502,308 | |
| MARYLAND Montgomery County Public Schools Contact: Lucinda Ross Sullivan (301) 649-8081 | $1,107,283 | |
| MASSACHUSETTS Springfield Public Schools Contact: Joshua P. Bogin (413) 787-7752 | $2,335,896 | |
| MICHIGAN Kalamazoo Public Schools Contact: Yvonne Payton (616) 337-0190 | $1,930,364 | |
| MISSISSIPPI Madison County Schools Contact: Joyce S. Franklin (601) 879-3025, ext. 13 | $842,687 | |
| MISSOURI Board of Education of City of St. Louis Contact: Eugene M. Uram (314) 231-3720, ext. 337 | $2,705,313 | |
| NEW JERSEY Montclair Board of Education Contact: Jeanne P. Pryor (973) 509-4015 | $619,479 | |
| NEW YORK Beacon City School District Contact: Ophelia Richards (914) 838-6920 | $428,447 | |
| Community School District #3 Contact: Gilbert Turchin (212) 678-2918 | $1,928,628 | |
| Community School District #10 Contact: Rosendo Abreu (718) 584-4335 | $1,492,932 | |
| Community School District 22 Contact: Robert J. Raddy (718) 368-8066 | $1,835,912 | |
| Community School District 28 Contact: Gertrude Smith (718) 830-8866 | $1,783,311 | |
| Freeport Public Schools Contact: Fern Eisgrub (516) 867-5227 | $921,886 | |
| Newburg Enlarged City School District Contact: Annette Saturnelli (914) 563-7218 | $1,061,474 | |
| New York City Board of Education Community School District 30 Contact: Angelo Gimondo (718) 777-4600 | $2,418,693 | |
| New York City Community School District #15 Contact: Cynthia Holton (718) 330-9293 | $2,829,108 | |
| Rochester City School District Contact: Woodrow Hammond (716) 262-8702 | $2,576,693 | |
| Yonkers City Schools Contact: Gladys A. Pack (914) 376-8213 | $2,466,310 | |
| NORTH CAROLINA Bladen County Schools Contact: Theresa Wuebbels (910) 647-6531 | $544,790 | |
| Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education Contact: Carol Newman (704) 379-7051 | $2,656,683 | |
| Edgecombe County Public Schools Contact: Susan W. Hughes (919) 641-2668 | $1,530,693 | |
| Wake County Public School System Contact: Geraldine Ritter (919) 850-1798 | $2,171,309 | |
| OHIO Dayton Public Schools Contact: Jo Helen Williams (937) 262-2778 | $2,574,373 | |
| OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City Public Schools District I-89 Contact: Guy Sconzo (405) 297-6488 | $2,652,448 | |
| RHODE ISLAND Providence School Department Contact: Paul R. Gounaris (401) 456-9201 | $2,856,392 | |
| TENNESSEE Hamilton County Department of Education Contact: Jesse Register (423) 209-8600 | $2,401,878 | |
| TEXAS Amarillo Independent School District Contact: Steffanie R. Chew (806) 371-5630 | $573,583 | |
| Corpus Christi Independent School District Contact: Linda Reed (512) 886-9115 | $1,441,145 | |
| Victoria Independent School District Contact: Marty Pedersen (512) 788-9270 | $2,242,389 | |
| Wichita Falls Independent School District Contact: Ruth Ann Huffhines (940) 720-3247 | $1,772,289 | |
| VIRGINIA Danville Public Schools Contact: N. Andrew Overstreet (804) 799-6400 | $1,208.601 | |
| Roanoke City Public Schools Contact: R. Faye Pleasants (540) 853-2502 | $958,050 | |
| WASHINGTON Seattle Public Schools Contact: Jay D. Iman (206) 298-7220 | $1,194,516 | |
| Tacoma School District #10 Contact: Karyn Clarke (253) 571-2534 | $1,997,271 | |
| Yakima Public Schools Contact: Becky Scholl (509) 573-7004 | $1,214,752 |
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