• Home »
• Newsroom »
• News Releases »
• Year 2007

SACRAMENTO – State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today congratulated the Long Beach Unified School District for being named a finalist for the prestigious 2007 Broad Prize for Urban Education.

"I congratulate the teachers, administration, students, and parents of the Long Beach Unified School District who have worked so hard to make this district a leader in public education," O'Connell said. "The distinction of being a Broad Prize finalist is a huge honor. Long Beach Unified's success in improving student performance and narrowing achievement gaps is what makes it one of the top urban school districts in the country."

The Long Beach Unified School District that was the 2003 winner of the Broad Prize, will receive $125,000 in scholarships as a finalist for the 2007 Broad Prize for Urban Education. This is the first year that a former winner returned as a finalist. The top winner of the prize this year was the New York City Department of Education.

The $1 million Broad Prize was started in 2002 and is an annual award that honors large urban school districts that demonstrate the greatest overall performance and improvement in student achievement while reducing achievement gaps among poor and minority students. The money goes directly to graduating high school seniors for college scholarships.

For more information, please see The Broad Prize for Urban Education [http://www.broadprize.org/] (Outside Source).