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State Education Commissioner John B. King, Jr. today announced 13 grant awards to 10 school districts (three of the school districts received two awards) under New York State’s “Common Core Institute” initiative.�� The awards, funded through New York’s federal Race to the Top grant, will support salaries for district teachers who will serve as Common Core Fellows.�� The Fellows will support school districts’ efforts to build capacity and provide professional development through continued implementation of the Common Core Learning Standards (CCLS) and the enhancement of the optional curricular modules posted on EngageNY.org. Fellows will be based in their local school district, but will participate in this work full-time.��

“This is a great opportunity to build on the work districts have already done to implement the higher standards,” King said. “We’ve had nearly five years of district implementation since the standards were adopted in 2010, and now these exceptional teachers can review the improvements we’ve made to EngageNY, develop potential local enhancements, and share best practices with their own districts and school districts throughout the state.�� We’ve always said pursuing higher standards is a continuous work in progress, and the Common Core Fellows are an important tool for New York to continue building on that progress.”

King said the State Education Department (SED) has worked over the past few years with New York State teachers and curriculum experts to create optional curricular modules aligned to the Common Core Learning Standards.�� As these resources have been made available for use in the classroom, SED has collected feedback on the strengths of the modules, as well as areas for potential enhancement, such as additional scaffolding for students who need more support or additional problem sets to help provide additional opportunities for student practice.�� The grants provide an opportunity for the Common Core Institute Fellows to build local enhancements and share them with their colleagues in neighboring districts and across the state. ����

School districts, charter schools and BOCES were invited to submit an application to be recognized as a Common Core Institute (CCI), a site committed to excellent implementation of the CCLS.�� Each of the selected CCIs will sponsor one or more Common Core Fellows and provide professional development for colleagues to deepen their understanding and implementation of the CCLS. CCIs across the state will share resources, successes and areas for enhancement that can meet the needs of all educators and all students in rising to the challenge of higher standards.

Final approval of the grants is subject to the review and approval of the Office of the State Comptroller.

For more information on the Common Core Institute Program and other State Education Department programs funded through Race to the Top, please visit . ��

Following is a list of districts receiving Common Core Institute with Sponsored Common Core Institute Fellowship awards.

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