KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Tuesday, Western Michigan University (WMU) announced that a large grant is being awarded to two faculty members to help provide more educational opportunities for children and families in Grand Rapids.
The total grant comes out to $29.5 million.
According to an official announcement, Drs. Patricia Reeves and Jianping Shen were awarded the grant through the U.S. Department of Education’s Promise Neighborhoods Program.
Said to be one of the largest federal grants in University history, it will be used to fund the Grand Rapids Southeast Promise Neighborhood Project.
“The College of Education and Human Development has been a key player in promoting learning in Southwest Michigan for more than a century. This grant and the proposed project demonstrate our continuing commitment to the communities we serve,” dean of the College of Education and Human Development Dr. Ming Li said.
The five-year project will be funded at roughly $6 million a year, and will be used to create educational programs for families and children alike.
In addition, officials say it will address a pipeline of 14 evidence-based solutions for student success.
Those solutions include school readiness, literacy and math success, transitions to middle and high school, post-secondary preparation, and a variety of student and family health and security targets, according to the announcement.
“Grand Rapids Public Schools is incredibly grateful to Western Michigan University for securing program funding that will have a profound impact on the students in our school district,” Grand Rapids Public Schools superintendent Dr. Leadriane Roby said. “GRPS and its partners in this endeavor share a common commitment to improving educational success for children residing in Southeast Grand Rapids. The Promise Neighborhoods grant will empower all of us to increase capacity for programming that will enhance our ‘cradle-to-career’ solutions. We are excited to roll up our sleeves and work collaboratively to improve developmental, educational and social outcomes for the children of Southeast Grand Rapids.”
Officials add that the neighborhood being served by the grant is located in the southeast area of Grand Rapids, which includes one high school and 12 feeder schools.
Reeves and Shen received a $12.5 million award from the U.S. Department of Education in 2017 to fund the High-Impact Leadership (HIL) for School Renewal Project, then one of the largest single grants ever awarded to the University.
The project, aimed at intense school leadership development and student achievement in high-poverty schools across West Michigan, was so successful in its first three years that it earned an additional $3.2 million, two-year grant renewal.
Officials say it is one of only four programs in the country to do so.
Each year, officials say about 9,500 children from birth to grade 12 and an average of 9,600 adults will be served by the grant.
“Children are the future of our society,” Dr. Shen said. “Our team looks forward to working with partners in Grand Rapids to improve children’s outcomes there.”
The ultimate goal of this project, officials said, is to not only improve the child and student outcomes in Southeast Grand Rapids, but also to “add to the body of evidence of methods that can be used to improve all impoverished neighborhoods as well as their schools, children and students.”
To learn more about the project, click here.
