MARYSVILLE — The Marysville School District will receive $1 million over the next three years to improve student achievement at Quil Ceda Elementary School.
The state’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction announced Thursday that the district was one of six across the state that wi
ll receive federal School Improvement Grants. The other recipients include the Burlington-Edison, Oakville, Spokane, Toppenish and Wapato school districts. Eleven schools from 11 districts applied for the grant money and requested about $13.5 million.
The grants for the six districts total $4.5 million just for the 2011-12 school year with the rest coming in subsequent years.
The Marysville district was forced to make about $2 million in cuts after the Legislature in December took away almost $250 million in public school funding. The district will face further cuts in the next school year and the grant is a “bright light in a dark-and-bleak budget,” Superintendent Larry Nyland said.
“We’re all working hard to improve student learning and that’s all the more challenging when losing money and trying to figure out how we can do more with less,” he said.
The district plans to use the grant money to extend the school day, provide more specialists, purchase additional instructional materials and pay for the professional development of teachers at Quil Ceda Elementary, said Gail Miller, assistant superintendent.
Each district that received a grant aims to improve education in one of four ways, according to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. The Marysville School District demonstrated a commitment to transformation at Quil Ceda Elementary that includes a new evaluation system for the school’s staff, Miller said.
Marysville School District applied for the grant on March 4 and originally asked for $1.5 million, Miller added.
“The district got less than it asked for but we’re happy,” she said.
About 500 students attend Quil Ceda Elementary School.
Amy Daybert: 425-339-3491; adaybert@heraldnet.com.
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