City's Promise Zone gets 290K from federal grant

THE CITY'S Promise Zone in West Philadelphia and the Los Angeles Promise Zone were awarded yesterday nearly $650,000 in federal grants to support college and career readiness programs, the Mayor's Office announced.

The federal funds, awarded by the Corporation for National and Community Service, will be used to train AmeriCorps members in West Philadelphia and Los Angeles. The members, in turn, will help students figure out what they want to do after high school and how to achieve it, whether it be college, military service, job training or another option.

Philadelphia's portion of the grant is $290,000, which will be awarded annually for three years with the possibility of renewal, city officials said. The city also will have to raise private funds to match the grant, the Mayor's Office added.

In Philadelphia, 25 AmeriCorps members will serve about 2,500 students enrolled in one of the four Promise Zone high schools: Overbrook, West Philadelphia, Paul Robeson and Parkway West. The schools' student population is largely African-American. In three of the schools, all the students are considered economically disadvantaged.

In accordance with AmeriCorps policy, the members will be paid a living stipend that reflects the neighborhood's average during their service, said Owen Franklin, director of the City's Promise Zone Initiative. When they end their service, they can receive either an educational grant or a financial package, he added.

AmeriCorps members will receive two weeks of intensive training before service begins and another 260 hours of training during the school year.

"It's a very important service," Franklin said. "They are helping students understand what their options are upon graduation from high school."

College and career readiness is the district's "overarching goal," Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. said.

Students "will benefit from these additional investments as they make plans for the future," he said.

West Philadelphia has received more than $30 million in grants since the area's Promise Zone designation. The funds have gone to mentoring and tutoring in education, and to helping young people find career opportunities after prison.

Online: ph.ly/DNEducation