TEN STATES RECEIVE CHARACTER EDUCATION GRANTS

Vice President Al Gore announced today that ten states have received a total of $2.7 million in grants to form partnerships with local school districts and the community to help youth incorporate good citizenship into their learning experiences. "Our success in the 21st century depends on our schools helping children master the basics and excel in their core academic subjects, " Gore said. "But our schools should also reinforce parental efforts to teach children good character and basic American values -- including respect, responsibility, fairness, and hard work." Under the Partnerships in Education Pilot Project, the grantees will launch a partnership with one or more local school districts to establish character education programs for youth. Parents, students, and other community members, including private and non-profit organizations, can participate in the design and administration of programs. The character education partnerships will help states work with school districts to develop curriculum materials, provide teacher training, gauge and build community consensus on common values, involve parents in character education and integrate character education into their curriculum. The projects will be evaluated to determine their success toward reducing discipline problems and improving student grades, increasing participation in extracurricular activities, and strengthening parent and community involvement. States are also asked to establish a clearinghouse for the distribution of materials and information about character education. The Partnerships in Character Education Pilot Project is authorized under Title X, Part A, Section 10103 of the Improving America's School Act (P.L. 103-382). New York State Department of Education $197,860 Contact: Mary Daley (518) 474-8773

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