Nine Illinois Charter School Developers awarded federal planning and development grants
Illinois Charters awarded a third of federal funds for proposed
or current schools
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Springfield, IL – The Illinois State Board of Education announced that nine Illinois charter schools developers were awarded $1.6 million in federal funds to be used toward planning, program design and initial implementation, as well as for sharing best practices. These new and proposed Illinois charter schools represent a third of the 26 national charters awarded $4.7 million in grants with eight Illinois charter developers receiving funds for planning, program design and initial implementation of new charter schools, and one charter school receiving a grant to partner with other charter and non-charter public schools to improve academic performance and to share its best practices.
“On behalf of the Illinois State Board of Education, I would like to congratulate these charter schools and developers for earning critical federal dollars and playing an important role in our state’s mission to ensure every student is prepared to succeed in college and careers,†said Illinois State Board of Education Chairman Gery J. Chico. “These grants can provide valuable resources for proposed and new charters to develop and implement high-quality charter school programs and for existing charters to spread best practices across Illinois so that parents and students have more options for a high-quality education.â€
Charter developers applied to the U.S. Department of Education’s Charter Schools Program (CSP) which aims to increase national understanding of the charter school model and to expand the number of high-quality charter schools available to students across the nation by providing financial assistance for the planning, program design, initial implementation and dissemination of best practices.
More information about the Charter Schools Program is available from the Education Department’s Office of Innovation and Improvement at http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oii/csp/index.html
Following is a list of successful Illinois grantees and the first-year grant award amount for each charter:
| Illinois Charter School Awardees | 1st Year Amount Awarded |
| 8 Points Charter School, Inc., Jacksonville School District 117 | $200,000 |
| Academy for Global Citizenship Charter School, CPS District 299 | $200,000 |
| Be The Change Charter School, CPS District 299 | $55,000 |
| Legal Prep Charter Academies, CPS District 299 | $200,000 |
| Northwestern University Settlement Association, CPS District 299 | $200,000 |
| The Catalyst Schools, CPS District 299 | $200,000 |
| The Montessori Network, CPS District 299 | $165,000 |
| Urban Prep Academies, CPS District 299 | $202,500 |
| Illinois Charter Dissemination Awardee | 1st Year Amount Awarded |
| Perspectives Charter Schools, CPS District 299 | $200,000 |
