October 10, 2003
October 10, 2003
LANSING – Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced a $150,000 grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation to help families in the City of Flint improve the academic performance of their children through broadband technology. A wireless network and a special website will be developed as tools for families and communities to improve their children’s educational success.
The one-year grant was awarded to the Michigan Virtual University to organize a pilot school improvement technology project for approximately 700 students and their parents residing in six affordable housing developments in Flint where schools are not making “adequate yearly progress” under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The pilot will start with the Washington Elementary School attendance area and may be expanded to other cities in Michigan where schools have not met the progress criteria of the No Child Left Behind Act.
“This project is a perfect triple play,” said Granholm. “It helps our children succeed in school, helps parents engage in their children’s education, and it was made possible through the creative partnership between the state and our generous foundation community. Helping Flint through creative public-private partnerships was at the heart of the Granholm Challenge that I issued to the region last year, so I am very pleased that Flint is taking a strong interest in its future through projects like this.”
The new website will help families improve learning experiences for their K-12 children as well as their own daily living concerns and activities. The site will bring together information on such daily living matters as personal finance, family budgeting, health care, child care, transportation, jobs, housing, legal services, and utilities. In addition, learning and school-related resources from state government and other sources will be brought together on the website.
"I am delighted that UM-Flint will play a leading role in this creative and empowering project that brings together three critical elements in the education of our children: families, technology and information. This is a good development for the Flint community," said Dr. Juan E. Mestas, Chancellor, University of Michigan-Flint.
Low-cost computers, software, and Internet access programs will be made available to residents of the local neighborhoods. Technology savvy young people will be recruited to help teach families lacking computer skills how to use their new high tech tools. Program participation will expand to include others in the affected school neighborhoods as the project develops.
"Broadband is the empowerment tool of the 21st century," noted James Butler, head of the Michigan Broadband Development Authority. "High-speed Internet access opens the door to education, employment, healthcare, and other information resources in a way that knows no economic or social boundaries. We are thrilled to be part of what I believe will become a national model for bridging the digital divide."
Flint Community Schools Chief of Schools Linda Caine-Smith said, "Education was a top community priority for the citizens of Flint and Genesee County when they answered the Granholm Challenge earlier this year. This partnership is not only a great opportunity for our schools but also for Flint and Genesee County.”
The University of Michigan-Flint will oversee the project locally and will seek out many partners from the local area. In addition to MSHDA, resources will be provided by the Michigan Department of Consumer & Industry Services (soon to be the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Growth), Michigan Broadband Development Authority (MBDA), the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, and the Michigan Department of Information Technology (MDIT). A total of $740,000 will support the project, including $330,000 in direct funding with $150,000 from the Mott Foundation.
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, established in 1926 in Flint, Michigan, by an automotive pioneer, is a private philanthropy committed to supporting projects that promote a just, equitable, and sustainable society. It supports nonprofit programs throughout the United States and, on a limited geographic basis, internationally. Grant-making is focused in four programs: Civil Society, Environment, Flint Area, and Pathways Out of Poverty. The Foundation, with year-end assets of $2.01 billion, made 606 grants totaling $109.8 million in 2002.
