Grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Will Support The College-Ready Promise as Part of a Groundbreaking Effort to Boost Student Achievement

LOS ANGELES -- A coalition of five California public charter management organizations will receive $60 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to increase effective teaching so that more students graduate college-ready. The first-of-its-kind partnership-known as The College-Ready Promise-was named one of the foundation's Intensive Partnerships for Effective Teaching sites because of its innovative plan to reform how teachers are recruited, evaluated, supported, retained, and rewarded.

The College-Ready Promise includes organizations with a strong track record of successfully serving low-income and minority students: Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, Aspire Public Schools, Green Dot Public Schools, ICEF Public Schools, and Partnerships to Uplift Communities. These five organizations operate 85 public schools and enroll more than 28,000 students, primarily in Los Angeles County. Aspire also runs schools in East Palo Alto, Modesto, Oakland, Sacramento, and Stockton. Collectively, they have earned a reputation for excellence because more than 75 percent of their graduates over the past two years are attending four-year colleges, well above the average for the state.

"Our organizations are united behind a common mission to give all students an education that prepares them to succeed in college-that's the promise we make to our students and their families," said Judy Burton, spokesperson for The College-Ready Promise and president and CEO of the Alliance College-Ready Public Schools. "With the support of the Gates Foundation, we will work together to advance effective teaching, attract and retain the best teachers to work with the highest-need students, and dramatically increase the number of college-ready graduates."

In California, only about 1 in 3 high school graduates in 2008 completed the courses required to gain admission to a four-year college, according to the California Department of Education. College-readiness rates are even lower for minority students. In today's economy, a college education is increasingly a requirement for a good job.

"California's charter schools have always been laboratories of innovation, and I am looking forward to seeing how The College-Ready Promise uses this generous grant to further teacher effectiveness and student college readiness," said Governor Schwarzenegger. "We all know that today's kids are the future of California, and that is exactly why I am pushing for education reforms that will help ensure our students are prepared to compete and succeed in the global economy."

Over the next several years, members of The College-Ready Promise will design and implement new practices to recruit, train, evaluate, and compensate teachers and principals. This plan includes four key elements:

• New career paths that reward highly effective teachers with higher pay and allow them to remain in the classroom as master teachers and mentors;

• Professional development opportunities that provide targeted support to help teachers improve their practice and meet the needs of their students;

• A year-long teacher training academy to make sure new teachers are better prepared on the first day of school-as well as training and support for principals to strengthen their leadership and make sure these initiatives are implemented with integrity; and

• A fair, transparent, and meaningful evaluation system to identify effective teachers based on multiple factors, including growth in the academic achievement of their students.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa praised The College-Ready Promise for its focus on supporting classroom teachers and school leaders. "Effective teachers make significant contributions to student academic achievement," said Mayor Villaraigosa. "But to be successful, teachers need the right training and support, as well as opportunities to learn from each other. The College-Ready Promise has developed a bold and innovative plan to provide teachers and principals with the tools they need to help students graduate ready for college."

One of the most innovative aspects of the plan is the development of new career paths for highly effective teachers. Teachers in most school districts across the country have few options for advancement. They can earn significantly more by becoming an administrator, but this requires giving up classroom teaching. Under The College-Ready Promise plan, highly effective teachers will be able to choose from three career paths-a master teacher, a coach or subject specialist, or an administrator-each with similar levels of compensation. These options will allow highly effective teachers to share their skills and help other teachers advance along the career path.

While the broad outlines of the teacher evaluation system and career path are detailed in The College-Ready Promise proposal, teachers and principals across the five organizations will be integral to the design and implementation of the new practices. "This is a great opportunity to rethink the way we attract, retain, and develop teachers," said William Heuisler, a teacher at Green Dot Public Schools. "I believe that America's educational system is in need of a fundamental and significant change, and I am hopeful that public charter organizations in California can be pioneers in that effort to ultimately improve our schools and benefit our students."

The College-Ready Promise plan also reflects a growing national focus on promoting teacher effectiveness. Guidelines for education funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act encourage states to develop plans to measure teacher effectiveness and ensure that effective teachers serve the neediest students.

"This initiative represents the best of what entrepreneurs bring to public education: an innovative approach targeted at one of the most critical levers in student success-teacher effectiveness," said Ted Mitchell. Mitchell is CEO of NewSchools Venture Fund, a national nonprofit venture philanthropy firm that has supported The College-Ready Promise entrepreneurs, and is also president of the California State Board of Education. "Through efforts like this one, entrepreneurs are changing the lives of children in underserved communities here in California and across the country, as well as fueling an important national conversation about what it will take to close the achievement gap so that all students are prepared for success in college and in life."

In addition to supporting the development of the teacher evaluation system, career path structure, and principal and teacher training, the seven-year grant will fund the development and implementation of common data systems to support the initiatives across the partnership. The proposal to the Gates Foundation requested $60 million to support a project cost estimated at $76 million. The College-Ready Promise will pursue additional funding from public and private sources, including federal teacher quality grants and philanthropic support.

"Today is an exciting day for our organizations, but the real work is just beginning," said Judy Burton. "We are committed to bringing in more partners to support this project and sharing our lessons broadly. We also need to enact supportive policies in California, including equitable funding for all public school students, so that more schools and networks can replicate practices that promote teacher effectiveness."

Earlier this year, the Gates Foundation invited members of The College-Ready Promise to submit an application as part of the Intensive Partnerships for Effective Teaching initiative. In August, the organizations were selected as finalists for the grants. For more information about The College-Ready Promise, visit: www.thecollegereadypromise.org.

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Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people-especially those with the fewest resources-have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/press-releases/Pages/the-college-promise-intensive-partnership-grant-091119.aspx

Three Green Dot Schools Recognized as 2009 California Distinguished Schools

Ánimo Inglewood Charter High School, Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School, and Ánimo Pat Brown Charter High School Receive Honors

 (Los Angeles) - April 3, 2009- Today California State Superintendent Jack O'Connell announced the 2009 California Distinguished Schools, an annual award that recognizes some of the state's most exemplary schools. Three Green Dot schools, Ánimo Inglewood Charter High School, Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School, and Ánimo Pat Brown Charter High School, received the honor of being named in the 2009 California Distinguished Schools.

"These extraordinary middle and high schools have shown they are able to increase the achievement of all their students and have provided evidence that they are closing the achievement gaps that, unfortunately, exist at many schools," said Superintendent O'Connell. "The Distinguished Schools program always identified schools that are leaders in academic achievement. It now also recognizes schools that are leaders in helping all students succeed, and highlights the best practices that are effective in closing the gap."

"The California Distinguished Schools Award is an incredible honor for schools to receive," said Green Dot CEO Marco Petruzzi.   "It has always been our goal to open high-performing high schools in low-income areas that perform among the best in the state.  This award shows that we have been able to do that.  I am so proud of our schools that have achieved this incredible accomplishment."

This year, the selection process required schools to provide an in-depth description of two "signature" practices implemented at the schools that are replicable, and directly related to the success of their students. During an intensive site visitation by a trained team of external educators, additional evidence about the effectiveness of the "signature" practices was gathered and analyzed. Information about these successful signature practices will be shared through the CDE Web site and other venues including an upcoming Web tool for educators called the Brokers of Expertise to become operational later this year.

The selected middle and high schools represent about 10.9 percent of California's nearly 2,400 middle and high schools. Of those, only 341 schools met the eligibility criteria based on their student achievement and were chosen from 170 school districts in 46 counties. An awards ceremony honoring the Distinguished Schools will be held Friday, May 29 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim.

These three Green Dot schools join 122 other high schools and 136 middle schools throughout the State of California in receiving this honor. To see the full list of schools, go to www.cde.ca.gov/ta/sr/cs .

For more information about the California School Recognition Program, including a list of corporations, foundations, and associations whose generous contributions along with registration fees from the attending schools make the awards ceremony possible, please visit: www.cde.ca.gov/ta/sr/cs/.  

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 About Green Dot Public Schools

Green Dot Public Schools is the leading public school operator in Los Angeles and is dedicated to changing public education in Los Angeles so that all children receive the educations they need to reach their dreams. It currently operates eighteen public charter high schools in Los Angeles' highest-need communities. Each Green Dot school (branded "Ánimo" schools) vastly outperforms comparable traditional public high schools. For more information visit: www.greendot.org

Dr. Gabe, a professor of psychology and a reporter for EXTRA! on NBC, visited Animo South Los Angeles Charter High School to ask students how they felt about the domestic violence issue between pop stars Rihanna and Chris Brown. 

Students agreed that both Chris Brown and Rihanna are role models to teens today.

"[This incident between Chris Brown and Rihanna] really changes my whole view on them," said a senior at Animo South Los Angeles.  "It's really a sad situation.  I really loved them."

Another senior student said, "If you're in a situation like that, you need to find a way to get out."

To see the students' interview with Dr. Gabe, watch the video at:

http://extratv.warnerbros.com/2009/03/dr_gabe_on_rihana_and_chris_br.php  

Animo Ralph Bunche student Allison Iraheta, 16, has been chosen by judges to move into the Top 12 contestants on Fox's American Idol. 

Iraheta has already won Quincenera, a Telemundo singing competition, back in 2006.  Now she has proven herself among the thousands who auditioned, and is one of the final contestants.

She won over the crowd and the judges with her performance of Heart's "Alone." Simon Cowell, producer of American Idol, called her "the best performer of the night by a clear mile."

Watch Allison's standout performance of "Alone" here!

Join all of the students at staff at Green Dot Public Schools in supporting Allison!  Vote for her to keep her in the running to becoming the next American Idol!

Charity Navigator, America's largest independent evaluator of charities, recently awarded Green Dot Public Schools with a four star rating, the highest grade possible to achieve. 

"Receiving four out of a possible four stars indicates that your organization excels, as compared to other charities in America, in allocating and growing your finances in the most fiscally responsible way possible," said Diana Fisher, program analyst for Charity Navigator.

Green Dot received high marks in terms of organizational efficiency and capacity.  Charity Navigator shows that Green Dot spends 80.3% on programmatic expenses, 19.3% on administrative expenses, and a mere 0.2% on fundraising expenses.  

To see the full report on Green Dot Public Schools, you can view our four star review here. 

Three New Green Dot Schools Are Among the First in the Country to be LEED Certified for their Environmentally Friendly Design

(LOS ANGELES) - October 22, 2008 - Green Dot Public Schools, the leading public school organization in Los Angeles, celebrates the next step of its historic Jefferson Transformation Project Wednesday with the opening of two brand new facilities in South Los Angeles. Ánimo Justice and Ánimo Ralph Bunche Charter High Schools share a facility at 1655 E. 27^th Street, and Ánimo Pat Brown Charter High School is now located at 8255 Beach Street. The three schools were opened in 2006 in an effort to transform Jefferson High School in South Los Angeles.

California Attorney General Jerry Brown participated in the school opening ceremony for Ánimo Pat Brown Charter High School to commemorate the legacy that his father, Governor Pat Brown, left for public education in California, as well as to celebrate the success of these Green Dot schools.

"My father believed that education is the key to improving ourselves and the world around us," said California Attorney General Jerry Brown. "I commend Ánimo Pat Brown and Green Dot Public Schools for their outstanding efforts at providing a sound education to the children they serve."

The Jefferson Transformation Project was launched by Green Dot Public Schools in 2006 to radically increase student performance at Jefferson High School, then the worst-performing high school in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).  Green Dot opened five schools in the area around Jefferson High School in order to serve the students in the Jefferson High School attendance area and to prove that the same students could perform significantly better if put in a small school, college-prep environment.  Within the first year of operation, the five Green Dot Jefferson schools outperformed Jefferson High School by an average of 171 points on the California Academic Performance Index (API).

The Green Dot Jefferson Schools serve approximately 95% Latino and 5% African American students, with 85% qualifying for free or reduced price lunch due to their families' income level.  Ánimo Justice serves a particularly high population of English Language Learners (ELLs), as almost 50% of all students at the school qualify as ELL.

"I am so proud of the success of our students," says Steve Barr, Founder and Chairman of Green Dot Public Schools. "Even in two short years, these students have challenged themselves, gone above and beyond expectations, and are breaking the legacy of failure and are preparing to go on to college.  This is the vision set out by the late great Pat Brown and Green Dot is proud to honor his legacy by naming one of our schools after him.

These school opening ceremonies celebrate not only the success of the Green Dot Jefferson Schools, but also the unique environmental design of the new school facilities.  Both campuses are some of the first schools in the country designed to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. Innovative features include the re-use of a former garment manufacturing building, use of recycled building materials and the installation of water efficient landscaping and bathroom fixtures.  Green Dot strives to set an example not only for the quality of education it is providing to the students, but also for the architecture and design of school buildings, making a statement for the importance of protecting the environment through unique design and construction.

The permanent financing of the Beach Street facility is innovative as well.  ExED, a non-profit charter school organization, will provide financing in the form of a below-market-rate loan, through the sale of the New Markets Tax Credit, in partnership with US Bank and NCB Capital Impact.

Green Dot has founded a total of 18 schools across the highest-need areas of Los Angeles since 2000, now serving Lennox, Inglewood, Boyle Heights, South Los Angeles, Venice, and Watts.  Green Dot Public Schools, which are built on a small schools model (not exceeding 560 students per school), as well as prioritizing autonomy and local decision making at each school site, are succeeding with high graduation and college acceptance rates. 

By implementing this model, Green Dot has produced incredible results, helping students close the achievement gap, graduate from high school and attend four-year colleges.  In Green Dot's history, 76% of its original 9^th grade students have graduated from Green Dot schools, and 80% of graduates have been accepted to four-year universities, with the remaining 20% continuing on to two-year colleges.  

"In my ten years of working in public education in Los Angeles, this is the most beautiful and inspiring school at which I have ever worked," said Ánimo Justice Principal William Herrera.  "This is the kind of place where dreams can come true."

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About Green Dot Public Schools

Green Dot Public Schools is the leading public school operator in Los Angeles and is dedicated to changing public education in Los Angeles so that all children receive the educations they need to reach their dreams. It currently operates twelve public charter high schools in Los Angeles' highest-need communities. Each Green Dot school (branded "Ánimo" schools) vastly outperforms comparable traditional public high schools. For more information visit: www.greendot.org

Contacts:

Tracy Mallozzi - Green Dot Public Schools

tracy@therosegrp.com

310-280-3710

OSCAR DE LA HOYA DONATES $3.5 MILLION TO

GREEN DOT PUBLIC SCHOOLS

De La Hoya Presents Check to Green Dot Public Schools

At Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo High School Graduation on June 19th

(LOS ANGELES) - June 20, 2008 - Green Dot Public Schools, the largest charter school organization in Los Angeles, announced Thursday that Ten-Time World Champion boxer, Oscar De La Hoya, donated $3.5 million to fund his namesake Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School and additional Green Dot schools. De La Hoya presented this gift to Green Dot Public Schools at the commencement ceremony of the Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School on Thursday, June 19th. The ceremony took place at Sullivan Field at the Loyola Marymount University campus.

De La Hoya, whose foundation is dedicated to helping underprivileged families in East Los Angeles, has been actively involved with his namesake school since its inception in 2003 and delivered the commencement speech last year to the first-ever graduating class. De La Hoya is a strong believer in supporting the community and often visits the school to encourage the students to study hard and dream big.

"Growing up in East Los Angeles, I know how important it is to keep a positive attitude and to stay focused on your goals," said De La Hoya. "I'm so proud of these students. Every one of them deserves a quality education and I'm honored to help them realize their dreams! This is a landmark day for everyone involved with Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School and I'm thrilled to be building a new school in my hometown."

Green Dot has founded and is in the process of building Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School and sixteen other Green Dot high schools, including several new schools representing the re-structured Locke High School in Watts. Green Dot schools offer quality education facilities to Los Angeles communities faced with educational, social and economic adversity. Last year, 92% of the seniors at Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo graduated and 71% of those students were accepted to four-year universities. Students from this year's graduating class are expected to go on to four-year universities including: University of California Los Angeles, University of California Davis, University of California Berkeley, University of California Irvine and many others.

"Oscar De La Hoya has been an amazing source of inspiration to Green Dot since its inception," added Steve Barr, founder and CEO of Green Dot Public Schools. "With his generosity and goodwill, so many gifted students have been granted the opportunity to obtain a safe, quality education and a chance to succeed in life. With De La Hoya's current donation, we will be able to continue to build schools that will ensure all kids receive a quality education for years to come."

The success of the Green Dot schools, whose students score on average 113 points higher than Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) high schools on the state of California's Academic Performance Index, is credited to the "Six Tenets" school model. The "Six Tenets of High Performing Public Schools" calls for schools to: 1) be safer and no larger than 500 students each; 2) implement a college preparatory curriculum for all students; 3) empower principals, teachers, parents and students to own all key decisions related to budgets, curriculum and hiring; 4) add more dollars to classrooms and significantly increase teacher pay; 5) value and support parent participation; 6) stay open later for community use.

By implementing this model, Green Dot has produced incredible results, helping students close the achievement gap, graduate from high school and attend four-year colleges. Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo is ranked among the top 10% of high schools in the state of California that serve similar communities.

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About Green Dot Public Schools

Green Dot Public Schools is the leading public school operator in Los Angeles and is dedicated to changing public education in Los Angeles so that all children receive the educations they need to reach their dreams. It currently operates twelve public charter high schools in Los Angeles' highest-need communities. Each Green Dot school (branded "Ánimo" schools) vastly outperforms comparable traditional public high schools. For more information visit: www.greendot.org

About The Oscar De La Hoya Foundation

In 1995 the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation was created to bring a better quality of life to the people of East Los Angeles. Today, with the help of so many, the foundation serves thousands of people annually. Offering the Oscar De La Hoya High School, the Cecilia Gonzales De La Hoya Cancer Center and the Oscar De La Hoya Children's Medical Center, both located at the White Memorial Hospital.

Contacts:

Danielle Rauschendorfer - Green Dot Public Schools

DanielleR@therosegrp.com

310-280-3710

Ramiro Gonzalez/Monica Sears - Oscar De La Hoya Foundation

Ramiro@goldenboypromotions.com, Monica@goldenboypromotions.com

213-489-5631

The School of Education at Loyola Marymount University will award Steve Barr, the founder and CEO of Green Dot Public Schools, the 2008 Educator of the Year Award at its annual awards ceremony on Sunday, April 27.

Barr set out to transform secondary education in California when he created Green Dot Public schools in 1999. Under his leadership, Green Dot now operates 12 high-performing charter public schools, with an additional seven slated to open this fall as part of the Locke High School transformation. In just nine years, Barr has greatly influenced and shaped the California education system, and serves as a leading change agent in the region and nationwide.

“Steve Barr embodies innovation and determination, two tools necessary to change the face of education in Los Angeles and two principles our School of Education prides itself on,” said Shane P. Martin, dean for the School of Education.

The Educator of the Year awardee is selected based on their impact to the field of education. This prestigious award has been awarded over the past 10 years to profound educators, including the 2007 California Teacher of the Year Alan Sitomer; newspaper publisher Monica Lozano and actor Tony Plana.

“I believe education is the great equalizer in our society and that it’s every child’s right to receive a safe, high-quality, free, college-prep education,” said Steve Barr. “It’s a great honor for me to accept this award and I appreciate LMU’s recognition of my efforts.”

In 2006, the Los Angeles Times named Barr as one of the 100 most influential people in Southern California. In addition to leading Green Dot, Barr is a State Board of Education appointee to the Advisory Commission on Charter Schools, where he provides policy recommendations to the State Board of Education on charter school-related issues. Prior to founding Green Dot, Barr co-founded the Rock the Vote campaign and oversaw the creation of Americorps.

For more information, go to: http://soe.lmu.edu/Page44341.aspx

United Federation of Teachers Contact
Chris Policano
(212) 598-9233 (O)
(917) 846-0933 (C)

Green Dot Contact
Ashish Kapadia
(212) 598-9203
akapadia@animo.org

South Bronx Hub Site Selected for Green Dot Charter School

Opening in September in Partnership with NYC Teachers Union

Firm's Los Angeles School Model Well-Suited to Needs of Bronx Community
With Large Population of English Language Learners;
Founding Principal is Former Teacher at Jane Addams High School

Green Dot Public Schools, the most prominent charter school operator and educational reform organization from Los Angeles, will open a charter high school this fall that will share space with Intermediate School 162 in an underutilized building at 149th Street and St. Ann's Avenue in the Hub area of the South Bronx, officials announced today.

The new school is the outgrowth of a partnership between Green Dot and the United Federation of Teachers, the labor union representing New York City's 100,000 public school educators, said UFT President Randi Weingarten. It will open in September with about 120 students in 9th grade and will add a grade each year until it fills grades 9 through 12, and class size will average about 25 students, she said.

About 900 middle school students currently attend IS 162 in a building with enough space to comfortably house both schools, Weingarten said.

"The UFT and Green Dot looked at a lot of different locations, and this one seemed to provide the right mix of space and opportunity to address a critical need in the community," she said.

"Our schools in Los Angeles have a great track record of serving communities with large Spanish-speaking populations of students, many of whom are new immigrants or are still learning English," said Green Dot founder and chief executive officer Steve Barr. "We know we'll be serving many students with similar backgrounds in the South Bronx, and we are confident our new school will fill a need and fit well with the neighborhood," he said.

The innovative partnership between the UFT and Green Dot is the first collaboration of its kind in the nation because charter schools usually do not employ teachers in unions and thereby avoid being bound by union contract requirements. Green Dot goes against that trend and is the only non-district public school operator in California that has proactively unionized teachers and actually encourages its employees to unionize.

"Green Dot's core principles are very much in sync with those of the UFT," Weingarten said. "Our educators welcome the opportunity to work in schools that have small classes, foster collaboration and respect for educators and actively involve parents."

Barr said the new Bronx charter school will replicate the progressive working conditions Green Dot provides in Los Angeles, including giving teachers a voice in determining school policy and curriculum, a fair disciplinary process and the flexibility to adjust the contract in key areas over time as needed.

Ashish Kapadia, former assistant principal for organization and supervision at the Eximius College Preparatory Academy, a College Board school in the Bronx, will head the Green Dot school. He was chosen after an extensive search involving more than 100 candidates interviewed by a team of Green Dot principals and staff. Born in the Bronx, Kapadia graduated cum laude from the University of Chicago and went on to earn master's degrees from New York University and Queens College at the City University of New York. He also taught for seven years at Jane Addams High School in the Bronx, specializing in government, economics and history.

The State University of New York Board of Trustees approved plans for the Green Dot charter school last October 26, just eight days after a District 7 Community Education Council public hearing on its plans. It was later approved by the State Board of Regents.

Green Dot currently operates 12 public charter high schools in Los Angeles' highest-need communities that outperform comparable traditional public high schools. Its schools have no more than 500 students each and they implement a college preparatory curriculum for all of its students. The firm has produced real results for its students, graduating 98 percent of its seniors with up to three-quarters going on to four-year universities.

"We're proud of our academic track record, and we're looking forward to working with the UFT to achieve great results here in New York City, too," Barr said.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:                                                                                                                   Green Dot Contact:

Beth Mills, Eric Lamoureux, Laurel Goddard                                                                 Tracy Mallozzi
916-376-5036                                                                                                             310-280-3710
                                                                                                                                 tracy@therosegrp.com
Monica Nakamine, Osborn Architects
818-246-3112

California Awards First ‘Green Schools' Grant to Ánimo Venice Charter High School

SACRAMENTO - The Department of General Services' Office of Public School Construction (OPSC) announced today that the State Allocation Board (SAB) has awarded a $107,000 to Ánimo Venice Charter High School in Los Angeles. Ánimo Venice is the first school to receive a grant from the High Performance Incentive Grant program, which earmarks $100 million for "green" school projects funded by Proposition 1D. The High Performance Incentive Grant is part of the $15.6 million the Board has awarded Ánimo Venice to fund the construction of the new campus, scheduled to begin in April.

"Green schools greatly improve the learning environments for kids while helping California meet Governor Schwarzenegger's goals for environmental responsibility," said Anne Sheehan, SAB Chair and Chief Deputy Director of Policy at the Department of Finance.

In December 2004, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed Executive Order S-20-04, ushering in the State's Green Building Initiative. The Executive Order encourages schools built with State funds to be energy-efficient, while creating safer and healthier learning environments.

"Energy efficiency is a key element in the design of California's schools, and studies show that students attending green schools are healthier and more productive," said Rob Cook, Executive Officer of the SAB/OPSC. "These schools emphasize a comfortable environment, full of natural light and air, with gardens, natural shading, reduced noise levels and lowered chemical emission rates from elements such as floor and wall coverings and janitorial products."

"High performance schools save money, preserve precious resources and demonstrate the importance of sustainability to our children," said John Sun, Director of Real Estate Development for Green Dot Public Schools.

Sustainability was a critical factor in designing the Ánimo Venice campus. Osborn Architects, the Los Angeles-based architect firm that designed the school, incorporated several "green" features in various aspects of the facility and campus life. These features include:

• Innovative day lighting - reducing the need for artificial lighting;
• Drought-tolerant landscaping - decreasing the demand for water within a water-use budget;
• A rooftop photovoltaic grid - generating solar power;
• An efficient mechanical system - exceeding Title-24 standards;
• Implementation of quality acoustics - conducive within a dense urban environment;
• An outdoor "paseo" - enhancing socialization and encouraging outdoor use; and
• A compact footprint - reducing sprawl and revitalizing an underutilized urban site.

California's High Performance Incentive Grant program promotes high-performing sustainable building practices, so that a school's infrastructure and materials maximize energy efficiency. The regulations for the program include a High Performance Rating Criteria modeled after the Collaborative for High Performance Schools program. OPSC uses criteria to determine the high performance attributes in a project and to assign a score that correlates to the increased amount of funding a project receives. The high performance grants will provide incentives of between 2 - 10 percent of the base grant for high performance facilities.

About the State Allocation Board, Office of Public School Construction

As staff to the State Allocation Board, the Office of Public School Construction facilitates the processing of school applications and makes funding available to qualifying school districts. These actions enable school districts to build safe and adequate school facilities for their children in an expeditious and cost-effective manner.

About Green Dot Public Schools

Green Dot Public Schools is the leading public school operator in Los Angeles and is dedicated to changing public education in Los Angeles so that all children receive the educations they need to reach their dreams. It currently operates twelve public charter high schools in Los Angeles' highest-need communities. Each Green Dot school (branded "Ánimo" schools) vastly outperforms comparable traditional public high schools. For more information visit: www.greendot.org

About Osborn Architects

Throughout its history, Osborn (www.osborn320.com), a multidisciplinary design practice, has sought clients and projects that emphasize change as an essential element of community development. Based in the Greater Los Angeles area, the firm has been privileged to work with many groups at the forefront of their industries in promoting progressive solutions to traditional challenges. These relationships have sponsored a design process that mines opportunity from very pragmatic criteria embedded in projects. As a result, Osborn has won 10 local and state American Institute of Architecture (AIA) awards in the last five years from a portfolio that includes schools, civic centers, parks, libraries and many non-profit sector projects.

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