The Leonore Annenberg School Fund for Children

 The Leonore Annenberg School Fund for Children provides educational resources to United States elementary schools in which at least nine out of ten students are living in poverty. Knowing the well-being of children is key to the well-being of our nation, Leonore Annenberg established the fund to make a positive difference in the lives of those who are most disadvantaged. The resources must be of immediate and direct value to, and be available for use by, the children. 

Recipients have used the support to purchase items as basic as books, playground equipment, and computers as well as to create a music program and a science laboratory. The funds help catalyze positive changes both within the schools and in the surrounding communities; among the projects are new literacy and mentor programs, which benefit local youth as well as their families.

CAE has a long-standing partnership with the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, which distributes the funds to schools in New York City, Houston, and South Florida as well as in high-poverty rural areas and other parts of the country. CAE is honored to partner with the Annenberg Public Policy Center on this project, identifying New York City schools in need of educational resources, specifically in the arts.

Nominations are made on an invitation-only basis, by partner organizations with a long-standing relationship to the donor. All grants are approved by a Selection Council consisting of philanthropy executives and the leaders of Annenberg-named organizations and institutions. Unsolicited requests are not entertained.

The Center for Arts Education is pleased to announce that PS 123 K: The Sudyam School in Brooklyn and CS 300: The School of Science and Applied Learning in the South Bronx were each awarded this prestigious $100,000 grant for the 2009-2010 academic year. 

PS 123 serves students in the Bushwick/Ridgewood neighborhoods of Brooklyn and Queens, an area which has one of the highest domestic violence rates in New York City. The majority of the students come from low-income and often immigrant families. In addition, the school serves students from two homeless shelters in the area. Since about 90 percent of the students are from Spanish-speaking families, the principal, Veronica Greene, has stressed the importance of providing them with an outlet to express themselves positively outside the confines of the English language. With the grant, PS 123 has built an Arts/Media Center with Apple laptops, camcorders, a television, a sound system, a Nintendo Wii console, and extensive creative arts software. Many of the school's students have few opportunities to leave their neighborhood and experience all the culture New York City has to offer. The Arts/Media Center gives them access to arts programs and helps integrate the arts more fully into their academic curriculum.

CS 300 is in the South Bronx, a New York City neighborhood characterized by high poverty, minimal resources, and little access to cultural institutions. For years, the challenges of low test scores, severe financial problems, and overcrowding made it difficult for the school to retain principals. But all that changed when Venessa Singleton arrived. To meet the many challenges facing her, Principal Singleton utilizes every means possible to create a school that engages the entire community, and her tireless work is changing the face of the school. The walls are now covered with artwork, and the students are eager to learn. With the support of the Fund, CS 300 has created a vibrant music program complete with a new music teacher, musical instruments, theory books, and sound equipment for performances.