HISD wins Prestigious National Education Prize

Innovations and Improvements Earn HISD Prestigious National
Education Prize
HISD Press Release
October 2, 2002
The Houston Independent School District has been awarded the inaugural Broad Prize for Urban Education. The announcement was made today at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kaye Stripling and Board of Education President Laurie Bricker attended today's award ceremony at our nation's capital to accept the prize on the district's behalf. Broad Foundation founder Eli Broad and U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige, Dr. Stripling's predecessor as HISD Superintendent, presented the award proclaiming HISD the best district in the USA.
"This is by far one of the proudest moments of my career, to stand before you as the superintendent of the winning school district," Dr. Stripling said. "This is a distinct honor. My sincere thanks go to the Broad Foundation and those on the review committee. I also congratulate the other districts that were considered as well. Your work and efforts should not be overlooked. In my mind, we are all winners, and I'm proud to be in your company."
The largest in public education, the Broad Prize was created to reward educational innovation and improvement. HISD will receive $500,000 to fund scholarships for students to attend college or other post-secondary training. HISD will also be showcased nationwide all year, sharing its best instruction and management practices with other urban school systems in events across the country and through local visits.
The new prize will be awarded annually to the urban school district that has made the greatest overall improvement in student achievement while at the same time reducing the achievement gap across ethnic lines and between high- and low-income students. HISD was tapped for the honor from a field of approximately 100 school districts. The other finalists for the first Broad Prize were the school districts of Atlanta; Boston; Garden Grove, California; and Long Beach, California. Each will receive $125,000 for scholarships.
The philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad established Los Angeles-based Broad Foundation in 1999 to improve K-12 urban public education through better governance, management, and labor relations. "Public education is the key civil rights issue of the 2ist century," Eli Broad says. "Our nation's knowledge-based economy demands that we provide young people from all backgrounds and circumstances with the education and skills necessary to become knowledge workers. If we don't, we run the risk of creating an even larger gap between the middle class and the poor. This gap threatens our democracy, our society, and the economic future of America. We must do everything we can to ensure that all of our children receive an education that allows them to become the next generation of knowledge workers. Resourceful leadership, 'outside-the-box' thinking and bold determination can make a clear and remarkable difference. The Broad Prize for Urban Education will reward and promote that spirit."