Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today welcomed Schools Chancellor Rudy Crew and a thousand students, parents and teachers to City Hall and presented the Mayor's Literacy Hero Awards to schools and community school districts that have made dramatic improvements in student reading scores over the past year.

Two weeks ago the Board of Education reported that public school students in grades three through eight showed a significant 3.6 per cent increase in reading scores, the largest jump in a decade and only the third time in the last eight years that the increases have occurred in all these grades in every one of the City's 32 community school districts.

"This morning I want to congratulate all of you -- the students, the classroom teachers, the school principals, the district superintendents, and the parents -- for helping to achieve the remarkable improvements in reading scores," Mayor Giuliani said. "And thanks to the remarkable work of Schools Chancellor Rudy Crew, New York City's public schools are becoming more efficient, responsive and accountable to the public."

"In the last several years, New York City has transformed its approach to education, from how it finances the public school system to the techniques it employs in teaching our children," the Mayor continued. "We have worked especially hard to improve the rates at which our children gain proficiency in reading and mathematics, and the last two weeks have brought significant evidence that we are on the right track."

Joining the Mayor and Chancellor at today's ceremony were Deputy Mayor Ninfa Segarra, Board of Education President William Thompson, Councilwoman Priscilla Wooten, several Members of the Board of Education, United Federation of Teachers Vice-President David Sherman, and Donald Singer, President of the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators.

Chancellor Rudy Crew said, "The improved reading scores of our students throughout the system are a testament to the power and potential of our system. Every teacher, every principal and every parent contributes to the achievement of our children, and today is a great day for all involved in our effort to make our children read and learn at ever-increasing levels of accomplishment. Today, we salute and celebrate each and every student -- and we vow to continue to support them."

At today's ceremony, the Mayor and the Chancellor presented the Literacy Hero Award and a book to students representing 17 Elementary, Pre-K-8, and Middle Schools and Community School Districts that exhibited excellent performance or significant improvement on this year's citywide reading tests. Another 12 schools and districts also received special recognition. (A full list of all schools, districts, their locations, and the individuals representing them at the ceremony is attached.)

Board of Education President William Thompson said, " I join Mayor Giuliani and Chancellor Crew in my admiration for and pride in the students, schools and districts being honored today. These Literacy Hero Awards recognize not only the abilities of the recipients here, but the accomplishments of children everywhere in the city. These reading scores indicate a system with high expectations and high standards of teaching and learning."

Deputy Mayor Ninfa Segarra, who also sits on the Board of Education, said, "Today's ceremony symbolizes the real progress that is being made by Mayor Giuliani and Chancellor Crew to restore New York City as a national leader in education. Through major new initiatives like 'Project Read' and 'Project Smart Schools', which the Giuliani administration has provided with almost $300 million in funding, we will continue to give our students and teachers the tools they need to excel."

As part of their own salute to the Literacy Heroes, Golden Books Family Entertainment, Inc. and Scholastic Books, Inc. donated gift selections for the school children who attended today 's ceremony. Musical selections were provided by the 68-piece Edward Bleeker Junior High School 185 Band from Flushing, Queens. School children designed and made all of today's stage decorations from materials provided by Materials for the Arts.

Literacy Hero Awards - Recipients

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Founders:	Carol Rich & Joseph Rich	Williamsburg,
Principal:	Sonia Ortiz-Gulard	Brooklyn
Exec. Director	Laura Bell
Student:	Kevin Hopkins
Student:	Chrystie Colon

There is a tie between two schools who will share the award for Best Performance of an Elementary School City-wide.

Superintendent	Raseh Nagi	Neil Kreinik	71-25 113 St
Principal	Eleanor Levy		Forest Hills,
Teacher	Rene Fail		Queens
Student	Mallika Nair
Student	Zachary Rosenblatt
P.A. Rep	Diane Tratner
VP of CSB	Phoebe Wiener

PRE K-8 SCHOOLS

Superintendent	Donald Weber	2950 W. 25 St
Principal	Bruce Wallach	Brooklyn
Teacher	Jane Grodin
Student	Genesis Reyes
Student	Raynard Glymph
PTA Rep	Therese Henry
CSB Member	Ronald Stewart

Superintendent	Joseph Kovaly	200 City Island Ave.
Principal	Ena Ellwanger	Bronx
Teacher	Karen Collier
Student	Bruce Barnett
Student	Ariana Freyre
P.A. Rep	Pat Hennesse

MIDDLE SCHOOLS

Superintendent	Lester Young	300 Willoughby Ave.
Principal	Frances Horne	Fort Greene, Brooklyn
Teacher	Clyde Ayers
Student	Jamel Stephenson
Student	Nafhetera Peart
P.A. Rep	Helene Caldwell

Superintendent	Aaron Friedman	51-60 Marathon Pkwy
Principal	Mae Fong	Little Neck, Queens
Teacher	Allan Grabkowitz
Student	Daniel Spelling
Student	Allison Steinberg

DISTRICTS

Superintendent	John Musico	215 Heyward St.
Principal	Stanley Wilson	Brooklyn
Teacher	Patricia Jelen
Student	Charlene Andrews
Student	Jesus Rodriguez
P.A. Admin	Daniel LaBianca

Best Performance of a District:District # 26

Superintendent	Aaron Friedman	61-15 Oceana St.
Principal	Roy Schmitt	Bayside, Queens
Teacher	Arline Wachs
Student	Joyce Oh
Student	Blaise Latella

4th GRADERS

Best Performance of 4th Graders of a School City-wide &

Best Performance of 4th Graders of a District: P.S. 48 (CSD #31)

Superintendent	Mr. Christy Cugini	1055 Targee St.
Principal	Sheila Feinstein	Saten Island
Teacher	Donna Lori
Student	Karen Wog
Student	Chinaedu Alaka
P.A. Rep.	Linda Broadbent

3rd GRADERS

Most Improved 3rd Graders of a School City-wide: P.S. 204 (CSD #9)

Superintendent	Maria Guasp	108-110 W. 174 St.
Principal	Howard Levine	Bronx
Teacher	Donna Cafarelli
Student	Jason Rodriguez
Student	Barbara Marcelo
P.A. Rep.	Veronica Garcia

There is a tie between two schools who will share the award for having highest scores of 3rd graders of a school city-wide.

Best Performance of 3rd Graders of a School City-wide: P.S. 128 (CSD #24)

Superintendent	Joseph Quinn	69-26 65th Dr.
Principal	John Lavelle	Middle Village,
Teacher	Patricia Buchala	Queens
Teacher	Anna Demeri
Student	Courtney Dunne
Student	Christina Serrano

Best Performance of 3rd Graders of a School City-wide: P.S. 209 (CSD #25)

Superintendent	Arthur Greenberg	16-10 Utopia Pkwy
Principal	Barbara Tashman	Whitestone,
Teacher	Elaine Getz	Queens
Student	Dayne Haskin
Student	Molly Owens
Student	Jenny Marc
P.A. Rep.	Bonnie Haya
CSB Rep.	Pauline Chu

Most Improved 3rd Graders of a District: CSD # 6

Superintendent	Anthony Amato	4360 Broadway
Principal	Lisandro Garcia-Markey	4 Floor
Teacher	Maureen Melnick	Manhattan
Teacher	Lorraine Weitzman
Teacher	Reynaldo Diaz-Lens
Student	Gilliano Garcia
Student	Justin Caraballosa
Student	Linda Ayala
Student	Veron Edwards
P.A. Rep.	Semiramis Ramirez
CSB Pres	Raysa Castillo

Best Performance of 3rd Graders of a District: CSD # 2

Superintendent	Anthony Alvarado	333 7th Ave.
Principal	Shelley Harwayne	Manhattan
Teacher	Joanne Hindley
Teacher	Renay Sadis
Student	Joel Attard
Student	Lauren Vriens

Our next group of awards are very special since they are being presented to a group of schools within the "Chancellor's District". These schools with special needs have been placed under the watchful eye and tender care of the Chancellor to ensure that the students receive the particular support they need to attain their goals.

CHANCELLOR'S DISTRICT

Most Improved School of the Chancellor's District: P.S. 154M

Superintendent	Barbara Byrd-Bennett	250 W. 127 St.
Principal	Elizabeth Jarrett	Harlem, Manhattan
Teacher	Charles DeBerry
Student	Devon Sharp
Student	Joy Howard
P.A. Rep.	Phoebe Arnold

Most Improved 3rd Grade of the Chancellor's District: P.S. 304K

Superintendent	Barbara Byrd-Bennett	280 Hart St.
Principal	Brenda Young-Williams	Bedford-
Teacher	Migueline Ortiz & Noemi Rivera	Stuyvesant,
Student	Brittany Francois	Brooklyn
Student	Owen Egharevba
P.A. Rep.	Susan Dubose

Special Acknowledgments:

4th Graders:

Most Improved - District	District 13	Brooklyn
Most Improved - Chancellor's District	P.S. 114X	Bronx
Most Improved - Elementary Citywide	District 27 - P.S. 47	Queens
Best Performance - Elementary Citywide	District 2 - P.S. 6	Manhattan

Schools that Defy the Odds:

P.S. 161	District 17	Brooklyn
P.S. 42	District 9	Bronx
P.S. 108	District 4	Manhattan
P.S. 29	District 7	Bronx
P.S. 160	District 20	Brooklyn
P.S. 86	District 32	Brooklyn

Magnet Schools

Best Performance:

Elementary	Lab Lower School	District 2	Manhattan
Middle	Mott Hall School	District 6	Manhattan

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