Archives of the Mayor's Press Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: Thursday, June 28, 2001
Release #233-01

Contact: Sunny Mindel/Matthew Higgins 212-788-2958


MAYOR GIULIANI ANNOUNCES SECOND ROUND OF GRANTS TO CHARTER SCHOOLS

Additional Funds Made Available to Build, Renovate or
Expand Facilities and Purchase Equipment

Only City Grant Program in the Nation to Help Charter Schools Flourish and Compete With Public Schools


Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today announced the availability of a second round of grant applications for the groundbreaking Charter School Improvement Fund, enabling newly approved charter schools to apply for funding of up to $250,000 each to help finance their equipment and facility-related needs.

In April, the City awarded grants totaling $3.42 million to 14 schools that applied to the Fund's first round. New York's Charter School Improvement Fund is the only one of its kind in the nation to help charter schools meet their capital needs and compete with public schools.

"With the creation of this Fund last year, New York became the first city in America to offer competitive grants to charter schools," the Mayor said. "Today, following on the heels of a highly successful first round of grant awards, we take another step forward by offering a second round of awards to help charter public schools compete with district-run public schools on a level playing field.

"The Charter School Improvement Fund puts New York City right where it should be -- on the cutting edge of education reform," the Mayor added. "Competition is one of the keys to revitalizing our public schools, and giving charter schools the tools to succeed will help the movement fulfill its promise."

All grants awarded by the Charter School Improvement Fund are designed to encourage academic excellence by using built-in performance incentives. As a condition of the award, schools are required to show sufficient ability to raise 10 percent of the grant in private matching funds. This Fund also incorporates a special performance-based award system to encourage charter schools' financial independence and academic excellence. When a school is given a grant for a project, 10% of the total award will be withheld. One to two years later, when school-wide student achievement has been assessed using standardized math and reading tests. In the case of schools with children in the earliest grades, who rarely take citywide or statewide standardized tests, other criteria such are used, including student attendance, student turnover, and teacher attendance. The following assessment system will be applied:

Deputy Mayor for Planning, Education and Cultural Affairs Anthony P. Coles said, "This Fund ties rewards to student performance, which is exactly the direction that the public school system should be moving in. New York City should be working every day to encourage the development of high-quality educational alternatives for our children. Unfortunately, the lack of capital funding available in New York State hampers the development of charter schools. These grants will help offset that serious imbalance in funding."

Charter schools -- public schools that are authorized to operate independent of local school district bureaucracies in exchange for meeting strict measures of accountability -- are placed at a disadvantage by New York State law, which provides them with only two-thirds of the per-pupil funds that district- run public schools receive, and no capital funding whatsoever. New York City charter schools received, on average, $6,630 per pupil in State aid for school year 2000-2001 -- 67 percent of the average $9,820 per-pupil allocation at the Board of Education.

Since the January 19 application deadline for the first round of funding, six new City charter schools have been authorized by the State Board of Regents -- bringing the total number of City charter schools operating and approved to 22.

All newly created charter schools or public school conversions that receive their official State approval by the expected grant award date, in September 2001, are eligible for the newly announced round of funding, provided they had not applied for the Fund's first round of awards.

The Fund is managed by a committee comprised of the Commissioner of the Department of Youth and Community Development, the Commissioner of the
Department of Design and Construction, and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. Charter schools with specific capital needs may apply for a grant by submitting a plan detailing how the school intends to utilize the funding. Grant award decisions are based on a school's demonstrated need, and on the quality of its proposal. Grant proposals are due by August 31, 2001.


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