LOS ANGELES - The Broad Foundation announced today the recipients of $125,000 in college scholarships awarded to 14 graduating high school seniors who attend Boston Public Schools, which was a finalist for the 2004 Broad Prize for Urban Education.
"We are proud to recognize these students for their improvement and achievement during high school," said Eli Broad, founder of The Broad Foundation. "The Broad Prize is designed to reward school districts that are raising the bar for all students. Going to college or trade school should be a goal of every child in this country. These students have worked hard to achieve academic success and have overcome many obstacles. We hope that these scholarships will help make it possible for them to go to college."
The Broad Prize for Urban Education is the largest education prize in the country and is awarded each year to urban school districts that are making the greatest overall improvement in student achievement, while at the same time reducing the performance gaps among ethnic group sand between high- and low-income students.
The winning district receives $500,000 in scholarships for graduating seniors, and each of the four finalist districts receives $125,000 in scholarships.
Unlike many traditional scholarships that are awarded to top tier students, Broad Prize scholarships are awarded to graduating high school seniors who have exemplary academic achievement and financial need, but most importantly have a demonstrated record of improvement during their high school career.
Seniors from each of the winning and finalist districts are eligible for two- or four-year scholarships depending on the type of institution they choose to attend. Students who enroll in four-year institutions receive $10,000 scholarships paid out over four years ($2,500 per year). Students who enroll in two-year institutions receive $2,500 scholarships paid out over two years ($1,250 per year). The scholarship selection and disbursement process is jointly managed by the Hispanic Scholarship Fund and by Scholarship and Recognition Programs, which is a program of The College Board administered by the Educational Testing Service.
Since the inaugural Broad Prize in 2002, 350 students from winning and finalist school districts have received college scholarships.
The winner of the 2004 Broad Prize for Urban Education was the Garden Grove Unified School District in California. The other finalists for the 2004 Broad Prize were Aldine Independent School District near Houston, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina, and Norfolk Public Schools in Virginia.
For more information about the Broad Prize for Urban Education, go to www.broadprize.org.
The Broad Foundation is a Los Angeles-based venture philanthropic organization established in 1999 by Eli and Edythe Broad. The Foundation's mission is to dramatically improve K-12 urban public education through better governance, management, labor relations and competition. In addition to the Broad Prize, the foundation's other major initiatives include the Broad Superintendents Academy, a ten-month executive management program to train working CEOs and other top executives from business, non-profit, military, government and education backgrounds to lead urban public school systems; and the Broad Institute for School Boards, an annual training program for newly elected school board members designed to increase student achievement through improved governance. The Broad Foundation's Internet address is www.broadfoundation.org.
The following 14 seniors were selected from Boston Public Schools to receive Broad Prize scholarships:
Broad Prize Recipients Student Name High School College Planning to Attend Natalie Colon