In a move aimed at promoting diversity and inclusivity in American schools, the U.S. Department of Education has announced $14 million in grants under its inaugural Fostering Diverse Schools Demonstration Program. This initiative, aligned with the Department’s broader “Raise the Bar: Lead the World” vision, seeks to empower local and state-led efforts to foster greater diversity within educational institutions.

The grants are designed to support districts in enhancing educational experiences for students, ensuring a well-rounded education, and improving overall school conditions conducive to learning. The Department’s objective is to address persistent racial and socioeconomic disparities in schools, such as unequal access to advanced courses, limited extracurricular offerings, and other inequalities that disproportionately affect students of color and those from low-income backgrounds.

“Every student in America deserves access to a high-quality education, but persistent racial and socioeconomic isolation in our schools continues to result in inadequate resources, lesser access to advanced courses, fewer extracurricular offerings, and other tangible inequities that disproportionately impact students of color and students from low-income backgrounds at every stage of their educational journeys and throughout their lives,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “Our Fostering Diverse Schools Grant program will support innovative, locally-driven efforts to Raise the Bar for academic achievement and learning conditions in our schools by providing more students with more diverse, more equitable, and ultimately, more enriching learning opportunities.”