ExxonMobile Provides $1.2 Million To Houston A+ Challenge For Area Schools
Funds Will Improve Math Education in Elementary and Middle Schools
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: December 17, 2008
Contact: Melissa Milios Davis, Director of Public Affairs, 713-658-1881
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| The ExxonMobil Foundation presented a check for $1.2 million to Houston A+ Challenge to continue a number of math programs to improve student achievement as well as train teachers. From left to right are: Gerald McElvy, president of ExxonMobil Foundation; Dr. Abelardo Saavedra, superintendent of HISD schools; Dr. Alex Kachatryan, president and CEO of Reasoning Mind; and Scott Van Beck, executive director of Houston A+ Challenge. |
ExxonMobil announced today that 21 Houston area schools serving more than 1,400 students will gain access to an innovative, technology-based math curriculum called Reasoning Mind as a result of a $1.2 million contribution to Houston A+ Challenge.
On hand for the announcement at Houston Independent School District's Burnet Elementary were ExxonMobil Foundation President Gerald McElvy, HISD Superintendent Dr. Abelardo Saavedra, Houston A+ Challenge Executive Director Scott Van Beck, and Reasoning Mind President Alex Khachatryan.
“ExxonMobil is proud to continue its support of Houston A+ Challenge and its growing partnership with Reasoning Mind and school districts serving Houston, Aldine, and Alief to support students and teachers with the tools they need to increase math achievement,” McElvy said. “At ExxonMobil, we are committed to promoting innovative programs that enable progress in math education, including disadvantaged and under-served students.”
During his comments, McElvy cited the decline of student interest in math in the U.S. as a long-term, serious threat to the nation’s economy, saying poor standardized test results in higher grades can be improved by focusing student efforts on mastering math fundamentals in the early grades, through use of a comprehensive, coherent curriculum.
“The positive results on standardized mathematics tests by students who have participated in the Reasoning Mind Program are compelling. We have seen 5th grade students in all three of the HISD Reasoning Mind pilot schools outperform the district," according to McElvy. "And the teachers who have been trained to present this unique program become better math teachers.”
ExxonMobil and Houston A+ Challenge began their partnership with HISD in 2000 with the introduction of a K-5 Math Specialists Program into elementary schools in the district's West Region. Since then more than 35,000 students in 23 schools have benefited from the program.
Based on the positive results of that initiative, the ExxonMobil Foundation provided funding to Houston A+ Challenge to launch a Middle School Math Specialists Initiative during the 2007-08 school year. To date, more than 4,800 students in four Houston ISD middle schools have been helped through the program.
“Houston ISD is making major improvements in student achievement, in part due to the many outstanding community partners who have taken an active interest in public education,” said HISD Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra. “As our district grows and changes, it will require more and more outside resources in order to maintain and exceed our current success rates, and these new initiatives announced today will be leading the way.”
Cornelius Elementary School in HISD, Wilson Intermediate School in Aldine ISD, and Angleton Middle School in Angleton ISD have been successfully using the Reasoning Mind program since the 2006-2007 school year. During the 2007-08 school year, the program was piloted in Burnet, Burrus and Moreno Elementary schools in HISD. The program was expanded in 2008-09 to add eleven more elementary schools including Bastian, Briarmeadow, Codwell, Crockett, Field, Frost, Mading, Mitchell, Park Place, Port Houston and Young. Also added were three Houston ISD middle schools - Hartman, Hogg, and Revere – and three intermediate schools in Aldine and Alief ISDs – Marcella, Parker and Youngblood.
Each of these programs is administered through Houston A+ Challenge, established to help educators create and sustain high-quality public schools based on strong relationships and relevant and rigorous student instruction.
"Without the support of the ExxonMobil Foundation, this opportunity to present innovative mathematics education programs would not be possible,” stated Scott Van Beck, Executive Director of Houston A+ Challenge. “Schools leaders often lack the necessary funds to experiment and invest in such programs that embrace innovative technology and tap into students’ higher-level thinking."
Reasoning Mind is aligned with the National Advisory Math Panel’s recommendations that prepare students for algebra and college by providing a coherent, world-class curriculum and motivating and exciting them about math. The program provides individualized instruction through innovative software combined with human interaction and offers instant analysis allowing classroom teachers to assess student progress.
“Houston students are proving each day that they are enhancing their math skills through the use of Reasoning Mind,” said Alex Khachatryan, president of Reasoning Mind. “We are getting a major boost today to further this excitement and help us achieve our mission to improve math education for all U.S. students.”
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ExxonMobil Foundation is the primary philanthropic arm of the Exxon Mobil Corporation in the United States. The Foundation and the Corporation engage in a range of philanthropic activities that advance education, health and science in the communities where ExxonMobil has significant operations. In the United States, ExxonMobil supports initiatives to improve math and science education at the K-12 and higher education levels. Globally, ExxonMobil provides funding to improve basic education and combat malaria and other infectious diseases in developing countries. In 2007, together with its employees and retirees, Exxon Mobil Corporation, its divisions and affiliates, and ExxonMobil Foundation provided $207 million in contributions worldwide, of which $70 million was dedicated to education. Additional information on ExxonMobil’s community partnerships and contributions programs is available at www.exxonmobil.com/community.
