Southeast D.C. Elementary and Community to Benefit from Increased Programs

    WASHINGTON, Aug. 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Freddie Mac
 Foundation today announced a $1.1 million grant over the next 18 months to
 provide further support to JC Nalle Community School. A decade ago, the
 Foundation committed to helping transform the southeast D.C. elementary
 into a full- service community school, offering a full-range of integrated
 services that children and families need. This grant to the National Center
 for Children and Families (NCCF) will continue and enhance the community
 school programming, which includes extended day, summer enrichment,
 Saturday school, mental and health services, and a parent university.
     "Many more JC Nalle children are -- and will be -- beating the odds and
 becoming successful students and citizens. Their success is the community's
 success, and we are thrilled to be partners in their futures," said Ralph
 F. Boyd, Jr., chairman, Freddie Mac Foundation. "The community school model
 works -- ensuring that children benefit from collaboration between the
 school system, nonprofits, and private enterprise."
     "JC Nalle Community School is a model that shows great promise. I am
 excited to see that our children are benefiting from this partnership.
 Although many challenges lie ahead of us in improving education for D.C.
 school children, I look forward to working closely with the Freddie Mac
 Foundation and NCCF to ensure that this model helps more children reach
 their full potential," said Chancellor Michelle Rhee, D.C. Public Schools.
     Based on the Children's Aid Society community school model, the JC
 Nalle Community School is a partnership between NCCF, D.C. Public Schools
 and the Freddie Mac Foundation. With Foundation support, NCCF leads the
 effort to coordinate community school programs. NCCF staff work alongside
 JC Nalle teachers, administrators, and parents to create innovative
 programs and bring needed services on site.
     This full-service community school is designed to improve the academic
 performance of students adversely impacted by poverty and violence. JC
 Nalle serves children from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, as well as
 their parents, grandparents and other community members, in order to
 address the barriers that prevent students from achieving. Many of the
 programs benefit the entire school, but special emphasis is placed on the
 lowest performing students and the families in greatest need of social
 support services. The grant will support these programs:
     -- Extended Day -- provides after-school academic, recreational and
        cultural enrichment activities.
     -- Saturday School -- helps students who need extra time in order to
        achieve academically.
     -- Cultural Learning Experience --matches local embassies with JC Nalle
        5th grade classrooms, transforming the classroom into "a window into
        the world."  At year's end, selected students experience the culture
        firsthand.  This year, 17 students traveled to Puerto Rico.
     -- Summer Enrichment -- provides 150 children with six weeks of academic
        instruction combined with structured recreational and social
        activities.  Also, 50 students attend Camp Wabana, a sleep-away camp in
        Edgewater, Md.
     -- Mental/Preventative Health Care Services -- ensures the school has
        additional, needed health resources, including two social workers, a
        part-time psychologist, a community outreach specialist and a
        behavioral specialist.
     -- Parent University -- helps parents improve relationships with their
        children, address educational and literacy deficiencies, and
        obtain/maintain economic stability.
     As one of its signature programs, the Foundation has invested nearly $7
 million in JC Nalle, making a difference for the school's 430 students and
 their families. A recent Foundation report documents the programs'
 successes. For example, nearly a third of the students are participating in
 the extended day program. Among the entire student body, there has been a
 decline in discipline issues. Parental involvement also is up, and
 absenteeism is down. More children are receiving health screenings and more
 parents are getting referrals to services they need.
     The school has seen steady increases in math and reading scores, with
 JC Nalle ranking first out of schools in its region in reading in 2006,
 based on the new D.C. Benchmark Assessment System. This past year was
 challenging for the school since the student body of a neighboring,
 lower-performing school was consolidated into JC Nalle. Despite this, the
 school still saw an increase in math scores -- ranking second in Region 4
 -- and remained nearly unchanged in reading.
     The Foundation originally selected JC Nalle based on both the school
 and community's interest in the model, the school's long relationship with
 Freddie Mac through its business-school partnership, and the community's
 high level of need. JC Nalle is located in the Marshall Heights community,
 the second most populous ward in the city, which has the highest number of
 households supported by public assistance, and second highest unemployment
 rate.
     The Foundation's investment added another dimension to the decade --
 long JC Nalle and Freddie Mac business -- school partnership, which
 includes hundreds of Freddie Mac employee volunteers. Over the years,
 Freddie Mac's employees have donated thousands of hours annually to enrich
 the lives of JC Nalle children by mentoring, being pen pals, going on field
 trips, building a playground, running Junior Achievement, hosting holiday
 parties and field days, and developing a public speaking program. In fact,
 during the announcement, students received thousands of back to school
 supplies donated by Freddie Mac employees. The community school model has
 complemented and enhanced the successes achieved through the
 business-school partnership.
     Created by Freddie Mac in 1991, the Freddie Mac Foundation is dedicated
 to creating hope and opportunity for children, youth, and their families.
 As the largest corporate funder in the Washington, DC metropolitan area,
 Freddie Mac and the Freddie Mac Foundation have invested more than $312
 million in organizations serving the community.
 http://www.FreddieMacFoundation.org
     The National Center for Children and Families (NCCF) is a private,
 nonprofit agency that is committed to serving vulnerable families in the
 national capital area since 1915. Mission: To create total, healthy living
 environments for vulnerable children, youth, and families, and the quality
 of life that empowers their ability to thrive and demonstrate
 responsibility. For additional information, visit NCCF's web site at
 http://www.nccf-cares.org.
 
 

SOURCE Freddie Mac Foundation

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