Today, Rep. Henry Cuellar announced that La Joya Independent School District has received a $1.65 million Teaching American History Grant from the U.S. Department of Education.  The money will be used to implement the Recent Immigrant & Special Education (RISE) Project. 

RISE is a comprehensive five-year American History teacher professional development project whose primary goal is to raise student achievement in the area of traditional American History.  The project does this by improving the quality of instruction in K-12 traditional American History. Forty elementary, middle school and high school teachers of recent immigrant and special education students will be served.

"I love that Project RISE focuses on American History teachers of these two special populations -- recent immigrants and special education students, " said Dr. Alda T. Benavides, La Joya ISD Superintendent." It will enable us to promote even better opportunities for kids with special needs and some with deprived backgrounds.  Our teachers will be able to bring the world to them."

The three main project objectives are: 1) increase teacher knowledge in traditional American history; 2) increase student achievement in the area of traditional American history in grades K-12; and 3) increase La Joya ISD’s capacity to provide long-term, sustained professional development in the area of traditional American history beyond the life of the grant period. This is the third Teaching American History grant La Joya ISD has been awarded in the last six years, for a combined $3,638,688 in that span.
 
“I congratulate Dr. Benavides and other La Joya ISD educators for their hard work in bringing this grant to the schools in La Joya,” said Congressman Cuellar.  “Their continued hard work and dedication will make a difference in the quality of education provided to the children of La Joya.”
 
"These American History teachers that work with recent immigrants and special education students often get left out when it comes to professional development in their content field," said Dagoberto Ramirez, Social Studies Coordinator and the Teaching American History grant director for the district. "Over the next five years, this group of forty teachers will benefit tremendously from the experiences they will participate in with our local and distant partners."

The major partners in the program are South Texas College, Region One Education Service Center, the Museum of South Texas History and Pennsbury Manor, Independence National Historical Park, Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, Hampton National Historic Site, Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, and Eisenhower National Historic Site.
 
All aspects of the RISE Project will be available as a direct contribution for research, policy, and practice, easily replicated as needed locally, state-wide, and nationally.

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Congressman Henry Cuellar is a member of the House Homeland Security, Small Business, and Agriculture Committees in the 110th Congress; accessibility to constituents, education, health care, economic development and national security are his priorities. Congressman Cuellar is also a Senior Whip.