Who are the finalists for the 2006 Broad Prize?
This year's finalists are:
- Boston Public Schools
- Bridgeport Public Schools, Conn
- Jersey City School District, N.J.
- Miami-Dade County Public Schools
- New York City Department of Education
This is the fifth year Boston has been a finalist, the second year for New York City, and the first year for Bridgeport, Jersey City, and Miami-Dade County.
What is the specific data examined by NCEA and studied by the Review Board?
NCEA and the Review Board consider the following:
- Mandated state tests in reading and math for elementary, middle and high schools.
- Performance of a district compared with itself and compared with the performance for similar districts in the state (based on poverty levels).
- Achievement gaps between African-American and Hispanic students compared to White students and between low-income and non-low-income students.
- Graduation rate - calculated graduation rate based on the Manhattan Institute methodology from district demographic data.
- SAT and ACT scores and participation rate.
- National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) state average performance and improvement.
- Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) performance.
- District performance on the Trial Urban District Assessment, where available.
- Student demographic data (income, language, ethnicity).
The Review Board then looks at the data, meets and discusses the results. There is no formula to choose the finalists.
What is involved in the site visits?
NCEA has developed a "best practices" framework. The site visits look for evidence of the five best practices areas at the district, school and classroom level:
- Curriculum and academic goals
- Staff selection, leadership and capacity building
- Instructional programs, practices and arrangements
- Monitoring, analysis and use of data
- Recognition, interventions and adjustments
The teams visit one elementary, one middle and one high school in each district during the three-day site visits. In addition to interviewing the district superintendent, school board president, union leaders, parent and community representatives, principals and teachers, the team also conducts classroom observations and focus groups with new and experienced principals and teachers.
How will the districts use the money?
The $1 million award funds scholarships for graduating high school seniors to attend college or other post-secondary training. The winning district will receive $500,000 in scholarships; the four finalists will each receive $125,000 in scholarships.
How are the scholarship recipients selected? How much are the scholarships?
The 2006 Broad Prize scholarships will be awarded to graduating high school seniors who have exemplary academic achievement and financial need and who 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, a program of The College Board administered by the Educational Testing Service.
What school districts have won the Broad Prize in the past?
The Broad Prize was started in 2002. The first winner was the Houston Independent School District. In 2003, the winner was the Long Beach Unified School District, in 2004 the winner was the Garden Grove Unified School District, and last year, the winner was Norfolk Public Schools.
What is NCEA?
Based in Austin, Texas, the National Center for Educational Accountability is a collaborative effort of the Education Commission of the States, the University of Texas at Austin, and Just for the Kids to improve learning through the effective use of school and student data and the identification of best practices. The Broad Prize has given NCEA the opportunity to explore the best methods for comparing performance in districts across state boundaries and to closely examine the practices of some of the nation's top urban districts. In addition, NCEA has developed an organizing tool as a method to share practices and network practitioners together to promote widespread school improvement.
What is The Broad Foundation?
The mission of the Los Angeles-based Broad Foundation is to dramatically improve K-12 urban public education through better governance, management, labor relations and competition. The Broad Foundation was founded in 1999 by Eli and Edythe Broad. 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 top executives from business, non-profit, military, government and education backgrounds to lead urban public school systems; The Broad Residency, a two-year management development program that trains emerging business leaders for senior management positions in urban school districts; 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.
