$15 Million Grant to Improve Student Achievement

January 2, 2013

More than 4,000 students and their families will be better prepared for success in school thanks to a new initiative based at WCER. The U.S. Department of Education has awarded nearly $15 million to WCER for improving low-performing schools in economically disadvantaged communities. The grant is part of the Department’s Investing in Innovation (i3) competition and will fund the expansion of a family engagement program in 60 elementary schools in Philadelphia: Families and Schools Together, or FAST. FAST has shown its ability to improve children’s academic social behavior for more than a decade. It has been implemented across 1,000 schools in the U.S., and internationally in more than a dozen countries. More information is available here.