A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

FOR RELEASE
September 15, 2000

News Media Contact:
Melinda Kitchell Malico
(202) 401-1008

Program Office Contact:
Loretta Riggans
(202) 260-2661

RILEY ANNOUNCES $20 MILLION IN GRANTS TO MAKE SCHOOLS SAFER;
PROVIDE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL COUNSELORS

Fifty-eight school districts in 30 states will share $20 million in federal grants to establish or expand elementary school counseling programs, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley announced today.

The new initiative will help school districts hire and train elementary school counselors, school psychologists and school social workers; expand access to counselors; and help share innovative and successful strategies for providing elementary school counseling.

"As the new school year begins, we must remind ourselves how critical it is that communities, families and schools do all they can to get connected and stay connected with young people," Riley said. "No child should walk the halls of a school unknown — or unnoticed. These new grants will help pair kids with well-trained counselors."

To receive the grants, school districts described their specific concerns, such as discipline, drug use, suspensions, expulsions and the specific gaps in mental health services and staffing they plan to change to address their problems. The Education Department considered whether projects will successfully address students? counseling needs, whether projects will build capacity and produce results after federal support ends and whether projects will establish connections with other agencies or organizations that also serve the target population.

To increase the likelihood of success, projects must:

• Be comprehensive in addressing the personal, social, emotional and educational needs of all students;
• Use a preventive approach to counseling geared to each child?s age;
• Increase the range, availability, quantity and quality of counseling services;
• Expand counseling services only through the use of qualified school counselors, school psychologists and school social workers;
• Use innovative approaches to increase children's ability to understand and get along with peers and family members, make positive decisions and plan for school and career;
• Provide counseling services that include classroom group and small group counseling, individual counseling, and consultation with parents, teachers and administrators;
• Collaborate with institutions of higher education, businesses, community groups, social service agencies, or other public or private entities;
• Evaluate program effectiveness annually.

School districts must establish an advisory board on the design and implementation of the program composed of parents; school counselors, psychologists and social workers; teachers; school administrators; and community leaders.

The grants run for up to three years and are funded under the Fund for Innovation in Education. The program will be administered by the Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education.

NOTE TO EDITORS: A list of grantees and contacts follows.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL COUNSELING GRANTS FY 2000

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