The Garden Grove School District picked up $500,000 for showing great improvements in achievement, including reducing the learning gap between rich and poor and between races.
According to Eli Broad, of the awarding Broad Foundation - created to support quality public schools, "Garden Grove is an example of standards-based education at its best, and the district's frequent testing, assessment and intervention has paid off."
An Orange County school district, Garden Grove showed improvement in math and reading at every school level and 95% of its students have met their progress goals according to federal law. The 50,000 student district is very diverse, economically and racially, with well over half the district qualifying for free / reduced-price lunches, while half the school are limited-English learners.
Last year, Long Beach Unified won the prize.
The money from the prize will go to graduating seniors for college scholarships.