PROVIDENCE, RI -- In an effort to help reform under-performing schools, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today announced that the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) will receive $487,186 in federal funding to improve teaching and learning in the state's lowest performing school districts. RIDE will use the money to provide technical assistance and support to high-poverty schools in Providence, Central Falls, Pawtucket, and Woonsocket.

"Investing in our schools is essential to educating our kids and providing them with a brighter future. This federal funding is another tool to help struggling school districts raise student proficiency in reading, math, and other core subjects," said Reed, a member of the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees federal funding for the program and a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, which oversees education policy. "We can help turn these schools around, but we've got to have the resources and support to move them in the right direction. This federal aid is a smart investment in helping our students and our schools reach their full potential."

This School Improvement Grant, awarded through the U.S. Department of Education, will allow RIDE to provide critical leadership and guidance to Rhode Island school districts that are not meeting academic standards. The federal funding will help schools implement effective strategies such as offering comprehensive professional development for teachers so they can help all of their students, particularly those with special needs, achieve in the classroom; developing after school programs for the neediest kids including those who are homeless, have learning disabilities, and speak English as a second language; and engaging parents and the community in their children's education.

The Fiscal Year 2007 Continuing Resolution provided $125 million for School Improvement Grants, the first funding for these grants since No Child Left Behind was enacted in 2002. In December, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which provides $491 million for the program for fiscal year 2008.

Last year, Senator Reed introduced the School Improvement through Teacher Quality Act, to amend the No Child Left Behind Act and create a new $500 million funding stream for school districts to help struggling, high-poverty schools implement comprehensive, high-quality support and mentoring programs for teachers during at least their first two years of full-time teaching; and sustained, job-embedded professional development programs for experienced teachers, principals, and administrators.