subject: US DOE Awards Atlanta Technical College More than $400,000 [print this page] US DOE Awards Atlanta Technical College More than $400,000
Atlanta Technical College will receive $419,198 in grant funding from the US Department of Education's Predominately Black Institutions (PBI) program. The award will support Atlanta Technical College's Institute for Males (AIM), an on-campus auxiliary program designed to increase the enrollment and retention of males who wish to develop themselves by pursuing a college education.
The PBI program supports colleges whose undergraduate enrollment is at least 40% African-American and at least 50% low-income or first-generation college students. The funds can be used for a wide range of projects, including programs that are structured to encourage elementary and secondary school students to pursue a college education and to develop tutoring, counseling, and service programs that improve academic success.
In a prepared statement, US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said, "This program provides valuable resources to ensure that African-American students are successful in college. Schools funded by this program will play a vital role in meeting President Obama's goal for America to once again have the highest college completion rate by the end of the decade."
A total of 23 colleges throughout the US received $10.8 million in grants from the PBI program. Along with Atlanta Technical College, five additional schools from within the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) received grants. The amount given to the six TCSG colleges accounted for 22% of the total grants and was the largest awarded in any state.
"Our colleges put forth a great amount of hard work to receive these funds, but the result was well-worth the effort," said TCSG Commissioner Ron Jackson. "We want as many students as possible to realize the value of a college education. These grants will help us to bring more African-American students into our technical colleges' classrooms and labs and, ultimately, help to create a better-educated and more versatile 21st Century workforce for Georgia and our nation."
