NEW YORK
The nation's largest school system has won the country's top prize in public education that honors an urban district with the greatest student improvement and most success reducing achievement gaps among the poor and minorities.
The New York City school system of 1 million students was awarded the largest share of the $1 million Broad Prize for Public Education, handed out annually by The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation. It will receive $500,000 in college scholarships for graduating high school seniors.
Eli Broad (pronounced "brode") said in a statement that New York is "a model of successful urban school district reform."
The four other finalist school districts each won $125,000 in scholarships. They are in Bridgeport, Conn., Long Beach, Calif., Miami-Dade County, Fla., and San Antonio.
U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings joined philanthropist Broad in Washington Tuesday for the announcement.
"We're privileged to have won," said schools Chancellor Joel Klein, who was in Washington for the event. "Obviously we have a lot of work ahead of us and we intend to do the hard work. ... At the same time, I think this is a moment to celebrate."
A panel selected the finalists out of 100 districts, based on data compiled and analyzed by MPR Associates, Inc., a national education research consulting firm.
To choose the winner, teams visited each finalist district last spring to interview administrators, observe classrooms and conduct focus groups with teachers and parents. Those research teams also talked to community leaders and union representatives.
A nonpartisan jury of nine people from government, business, education and public service then reviewed the performance data and the information from site visits.
The Broad Foundation said New York City, with its 1,450 schools, 80,000 teachers and annual budget of $17 billion, stood out for several reasons. On reading and math in all grades in 2006, it outperformed other districts in the state that serve students at similar income levels, according to Broad methodology.
