Most Popular Videos Featured On KDKA.com
Aug 20, 2009 3:47 pm US/Eastern
City School District Finalist For Gates Grant
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ―
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and his wife Melinda's foundation wants to give away half a billion dollars to improve teaching in America and the Pittsburgh Public Schools District is one of five who have made the final stage of the competition.
Superintendent Mark Roosevelt tells KDKA-TV the district has come a long way.
"When they started with a 110 districts - we were told we should be proud we were in that group. When they narrowed it to 25, we were told we should very proud to be in that group," Supt. Mark Roosevelt said. "When they narrowed it to 10, they said, 'My God, we're astonished you're still here,' and now here we are."
The school is in the final stage of the competition.
The John Tarka, president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers, says the pitch to the Gates Foundation focused on teachers.
"We can do a better job of helping those new - teachers - some of the most difficult items in teachers career are those first years of teaching," he said.
"It's how we hire teachers - how we recruit teachers - right now I don't think we do enough work to make sure they have the skill sets and the belief systems that are necessary," Roosevelt said.
Roosevelt won't say how much money the district requested but he says the grant is easily in the tens of millions of dollars and now they're in the contract-making phase.
The district has to submit some paperwork next month and then by the end of October they could know how much money they should be getting.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Latest 5-Day Forecast
Click to enlarge
Contractors Assisting City With Snow Removal 8 mins ago 
New Storm May Drop 4-8 Inches Of Snow 11 mins ago 
Stumble It!
Comments