A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

FOR RELEASE: December 20, 2000	Contact:         Melinda Ulloa (202) 205-8811

$15 MILLION IN GRANTS TO CREATE NEW DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAMS

U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley today announced that some $15 million in grants will go to 71 elementary schools nationwide to help develop successful new dual language programs.

Dual language programs are designed to help all participating students become fluent in both English and in a second language. English-speaking children are placed in classrooms with non-English speakers and all instruction is in both languages. The most successful programs begin in pre-kindergarten and continue through the 6^th grade.

"Dual language programs help bring children closer together through the very thing that has kept them apart ? language," Riley said. "I am delighted that we are creating more of these programs and that we are closer to realizing our goal of having 1,000 such programs by 2005."

Riley said successful programs share the following goals:

• Students will develop high levels of proficiency in their first language;
• Students will develop high levels of proficiency in a second language;

• Academic performance will be at or above grade level in both languages;
• Students will develop greater cross-cultural awareness and knowledge.

Chosen from 210 applications, a total of 29 grants are going to develop and implement new dual language programs for particular classes within those chosen schools. An additional 42 grants are comprehensive school awards designed to ensure that the schools receiving them will be entirely dual language schools by the end of the five-year grant period. Not including this year's grantees, there are 261 dual language programs nationwide.

Earlier this year [March 15] Riley said that the dual language approach should be more widely used. Speaking at the Bell Multicultural High School in Washington, D.C., he said, "Our nation can only grow stronger if all children grow up learning two languages. The early school years are the best and easiest time for children to learn language."

Funding for the dual language programs comes through the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Languages Affairs. Statements by Secretary Riley, Secretary of Commerce, Norman Mineta , and Secretary of the Army, Luis Caldera, can be seen at http://www.connectlive.com/events/deptedu/.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Following is a list of grantees.

AZ   Piñon, Piñon Unified School District #4, $243,612

AZ   Tuba City, Grey Hills Academy High School, $198,675

CA   Bishop, Bishop Union Elementary School District, $254,906

CA   Concord, Mt. Diablo Unified School District, $260,274

CA   East Palo Alto, Ravenswood City School Distrcit, $278,198

CA   Greenfield, Greenfield Union School District, $251,966

CA   Norwalk, Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District, $249,334

CA   Oakland, Oakland Unified School District, $182,339

CA   San Francisco, San Francisco Unified, $274,776

CA   San Francisco, San Francisco Unified School District, $239,035

CA   San Luis Obispo, San Luis Coastal Unified School District, $276,666

CA   Santa Ana, Santa Ana Charter School of the Arts And Sciences, $244,520

CO   Aurora, Aurora Public Schools, $210,070

CO   Fort Lupton, Weld County School District RE8, $276,816

CT   New Haven, New Haven Public Schools, $259,889

FL   Fort Lauderdale, School Board of Broward County, Florida, $248,127

FL   Orlando, School Board /Orange County, Flordia, $218,215

FL   Orlando, School Board of Orange County, Florida, $178,525

IL   Chicago, Chicago Public Schools, $246,850

MA   Cambridge, Cambridge Public Schools, $300,000

NM   Albuquerque, Albuquerque Public Schools, $292,557

NY   Bronx, Community School District 12, $299,250

NY   Brooklyn, Board of Education, $250,000

NY   New Rochelle, City School District of New Rochelle, $216,664

OH   Cleveland, Cleveland Municipal School District, $201,400

OK   Hennessey, Hennessey Public School, $213,000

OK   Hominy, Osage County Interlocal Cooperative, $226,000

TX   Cabytukki, Canutillo Independent School District, $300,000

TX   Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi Independent School District, $209,592

TX   Edinburg, Region One Education Serivces Center, $203,722

TX   Edinburg, Region One Education Services Center, $243,151

TX   Fabens, Fabens Independent School District, $267,000

TX   Hidalgo, Hidalgo Independent School, $294,386

TX   Houston, Houston Independent School District, $241,912

TX   Houston, Houston Independent School District, $258,331

TX   Houston, Houston Independent School District, $259,245

TX   Laredo, United Independent School District, $265,251

TX   Mercedes, Mercedes Independent School District, $275,000

TX   Richardson, Richardson Elementary School District, $271,000

TX   San Antonio, North East Independent School District, $284,657

TX   San Juan, Pharr San Juan Independent School District, $286,730

WI   Milwaukee, Milwaukee Public Schools, $254,385

AK   Anchorage, Anchorage School District, $171,646

AZ   Chinle, Chinle School District, $157,883

CA   Chico, Chico Unified School District, $150,000

CA   Lamont, Lamont School District, $30,108

CA   Los Angeles, Los Angeles Unified School District -- Meyler Street School, $174,370

CA   Los Angeles, Los Angeles Unified Sch. Dist. -- San Gabriel Avenue School, $175,000

CA   Pleasanton, Pleasanton Unified School District, $171,000

CA   Santa Ana, Santa Ana Unified School District, $175,000

CA   Soledad, Soledad Unified School District, $175,000

CO   Aurora, Aurora Public Schools, $81,739

CO   Denver, Western Hills Elementary, $169,640

CT   Bridgeport, Bridgeport Board of Education, $145,000

HI   Honolulu, University of Hawaii, $174,758

ID   Hailey, Blaine County School District #61, $169,000

IL   Evanston, Evanston/Skokie School District 65, $167,607

IL   Schaumburg, Schaumburg C.C. School District 54, $110,000

NC   Morganton, Orlena Hawks Puckett Institute, $170,912

NY   Copiague, Copiague Union Free School, $112,500

NY   New York, Community Sch. Dist. Six -- Public School # 8 / Project 2004, $175,000

NY   New York, Shuaug Wen School, $100,000

OR   Forest Grove, Forest Grove School District, $129,032

OR   Kalamath Falls, Klamath Falls City Schools, $141,758

TX   Benavides, Benavides Isd, $175,000

TX   Edcouch, Monte Alto Independent School District, $167,236

TX   Houston, Houston Inddependent School District, $154,122

TX   Houston, Spring Branch ISD, $150,000

TX   San Antonio, Northside Independent School District, $170,000

UT   Salt Lake City, Salt Lake City School District, $158,000

WA   Manson, Manson School District, $131,100