Gwinnett County Public Schools is in the running again to be named the top district in the nation.
The district is one of five finalists for the $1 million Broad Prize, known as the "Nobel Prize" of public education, which will be awarded Tuesday by U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan. The Broad Prize is presented to large school districts with a diverse population and a record of steadily increasing academic achievement among racial groups and the poor.
This is Gwinnett’s second year in a row being considered for the honor.
“We are ecstatic,” said Mary Kay Murphy, a Gwinnett school board member. “We are in an elite group of school systems in the nation that have been recognized for closing the achievement gap. Our community can have great confidence that we are educating all of our students.”
Gwinnett Schools is one of five finalists; four finalists get $250,000 each for scholarships for college-bound students, while the the winning district gets $1 million. The other finalists are Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools of North Carolina; Montgomery County Public Schools of Maryland; Socorro Independent School District and Ysleta Independent School District, both of Texas.
Thirteen Gwinnett students received scholarships this year under the program, which recognizes students going to a two- or four-year college who have struggled and improved their grades in high school.
“There will be a lot of folks from across the country paying close attention to see who is on top,” said Erica Lepping, spokeswoman for the Broad Prize, which has presented $8 million in scholarships to districts in eight years. “Districts like Gwinnett deserve great credit for being a finalist two years in a row. It really is just maybe 10 or so [large urban] school districts in the last decade that continue to make gains year to year that outpace others.”
Broad officials choose finalists based on student performance over a three-year period. Gwinnett was noted for achieving significant gains between 2005 and 2009, Lepping said. Among them:
- The average SAT score of 1526 in 2009 topped state and national averages.
- Between 2006 and 2009 SAT participation for African-Americans rose by 9 percentage points.
- 12 Gwinnett high schools were named Advanced Placement (AP) Honor Schools for performance on exams that prepare students for the rigors of college.
Administrators, parents and community leaders will gather in front of a giant projection screen Tuesday in the district’s Suwanee headquarters to cheer on the school system at a viewing party.
Demming Bass, vice president of communications and public policy for the Gwinnett Chamber, says he'll be there.
“We already know they are the best school system in the country,” he said. “We are looking forward to hearing that from other people. Our school system plays such a huge role in the success we have recruiting jobs and companies to the area.”
Craig Elementary School mom Shannon Stovern said her family relocated to Gwinnett for its reputation. “Gwinnett County has always been a strong place for education," she said. "I am pleased that they are in the running for the nation’s best district. It’s no doubt, they deserve it.”
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