Downtown schools could see up to $100,000 each from the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation as soon as January.
The L.M.D.C. promised $4.5 million to local schools last year, and last week they released new details on how they will distribute the money. Schools will apply for the grants this November, choosing one of five categories: library, fitness, art, technology or science. The L.M.D.C. will take several months to evaluate the applications and hopes to give the money out early next year, spokesperson Mike Murphy said.
At the L.M.D.C.’s board meeting earlier this month, the agency allocated the $4.5 million to the Department of Education, which will issue the request for proposals and help the L.M.D.C. select the recipients. The D.O.E. will use $150,000 of the grant money to hire a staff person to administer the grants for two years.
All 63 Manhattan public schools south of Houston St. are eligible. The exact amount of each school’s grant depends on which category the school applies for and the number of schools that apply.
These grants are the last stage of the L.M.D.C.’s $37 million in community enhancement grants, announced last fall. Only a couple schools applied for grants back then, so the L.M.D.C. rethought the application process and set aside the $4.5 million for future grants. Originally, several schools applied for large capital improvements, including gyms, but the new grants are for smaller items.
Murphy said the new grants are designed to serve a maximum number of students.
“We wanted to make sure that we weren’t pitting the schools against each other but were creating a fair process,” Murphy said.
Schools that are still seeking a boost to their fitness program can apply for up to $70,000 for equipment like free weights, stationary bikes, heart rate monitors and pedometers. The library grants will provide up to $100,000 per school to update the library’s collection, technology and furnishings. The arts grants will provide up to $90,000 to create studio or performance spaces, bring artists-in-residence and buy tickets to performances and exhibitions.
Schools that want to apply for the technology grants can receive up to $100,000 for one of three options: a wireless classroom, a wired classroom or low-cost laptops. Finally, schools can receive up to $72,500 for a mobile science laboratory with new equipment.
–Julie Shapiro
