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SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today announced 11 awardees will receive $7.7 million in Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) grants. For the list of grantees, please visit Funding Results: Advancement Via Individual Determination.

"These grantees were selected because of the critical role they play in implementing AVID programs that have a proven track record of helping more than 120,000 disadvantaged students succeed academically," said O'Connell."But most importantly, we know that AVID students pass the exit exam, graduate from high school, and go on to college at rates that far exceed their peers in non-AVID courses."

AVID is an in-school academic support program designed to immerse underachieving students in grades four through twelve with high expectations and appropriate support. The program is designed to help students step up to the challenge, perform better academically, and become better prepared for college and careers. AVID is a good example of what O'Connell calls the four R's of education — rigor, relevance, relationships, and results — that are crucial for student success. AVID also addresses four key themes identified by his California P-16 Council — access, culture/climate, expectations, and strategies — that are designed to close the persistent student achievement gap.

AVID was developed in 1980 by a San Diego teacher and has seen steady growth throughout California, nationally, and internationally in the last 27 years. Starting with one class of 32 students, the college preparatory program now serves more than 3,500 schools in 45 states and 15 countries. By 1994, 237 AVID schools in California served 13,869 students. Now, after more than a decade of state funding, there are about 145,000 AVID students at nearly 1,400 California middle schools and high schools. About two-thirds of these AVID school sites are in the top deciles one through five of the state's accountability model, the Academic Performance Index.

AVID has consistently achieved positive results validated by years of research. In recent years, nearly 100 percent of AVID students graduated from high school, and nearly 88 percent of these students complete the course requirements for admission to California's four-year public colleges and universities. In California's middle and high schools with AVID, 69 percent of the students enrolled in these elective courses are either Hispanic/Latino or African American, while 56 percent of the students are socioeconomically disadvantaged.

AVID's success has led the state legislature to increase funding for the program from $1 million in 1995 to a maximum of $11 million in 2000. A prior state budget crisis reduced funding to its current level of $7.7 million and has not been readjusted for inflation nor rising costs. AVID currently operates in about half of all California middle schools and high schools and has not reached full-scale implementation. AVID faces further possible cuts of $904,000 in the Governor's proposed 2008-09 budget beginning on July 1, 2008.

"To help even more of California's students to achieve at higher levels, I have asked the Governor for his support for restoring and increasing AVID funding, and to provide new funding for AVID programs in elementary schools as other states have done," added O'Connell. “Unfortunately, the current proposed budget does not contain any increase in AVID funding. Instead, the budget proposes to cut AVID funding significantly, which is a giant leap backward. While I fully realize the seriousness of our state's current fiscal crisis, I am convinced that even in difficult financial times, it continues to be morally imperative that we place a high priority on the education of all our students, and in particular, on the future success of so many of our most disadvantaged students."

The AVID grant award is noncompetitive. Local educational agencies representing all 11 county superintendents' regions throughout the state applied for and received the grant funding. This is the second year of a three-year funding cycle, and money was available only for the existing grantees. The amount of the grant was based on a formula using the number of students within the region receiving free and reduced-price meals; regional enrollment for grades seven through twelve; the number of middle schools and high schools within the region; and the number of AVID schools within the region. To receive continued funding, grantees must show that they have the capacity to serve all current and emerging AVID sites located within the region. High schools and middle schools in all counties and districts can implement the AVID program.

For more information about AVID, please visit Past Funding Profile (ID 1226): Advancement Via Individual Determination.