$105,831 Challenge Grant for Mount Vernon Schools

MOUNT VERNON, NY — The city school district will receive money under a challenge grant announced Tuesday by State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia and aimed at programs and strategies to help boys and young men of color—and all students—realize their full potential.

Such strategies are explored in a report commissioned and released Tuesday by the State Education Department.

The report, New York State Education Department My Brother’s Keeper Guidance Document: Emerging Practices for Schools and Communities, provides an overview of the outcome trends among boys of color in K-12 school environments, and a research review of the most prevalent strategies currently being implemented in schools and communities across the country.

“These grants are a critical step in bringing greater equity and fairness to New York’s students, particularly students of color,” said Board of Regents Chancellor Betty A. Rosa. “The funding will improve the quality and diversity of New York’s teaching corps and will help schools and community organizations develop and execute cradle-to-career college strategies. Taken together, these efforts will result in better school and life outcomes for boys and young men of color.”

In all, the State Education Department awarded $10 million in grants to 56 organizations for two New York State My Brother’s Keeper Initiatives: the Teacher Opportunity Corps II (TOC) and the MBK Challenge Grant Program.

In 2014, President Barack Obama established the My Brother’s Keeper (MBK) Task Force at the federal level. The Task Force was an interagency effort focused on closing and eliminating the opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color so that all young people have the chance to reach their full potential.

With the adoption of the 2016–2017 New York State budget, New York became the first state to accept the President’s challenge and enacted the My Brother’s Keeper initiative into law. The budget included a $20 million investment in support of the initiative to improve outcomes for boys and young men of color. Among the programs included in the $20 million investment are the MBK Challenge Grant Program and TOC II.