[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 65 (Wednesday, May 20, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E906]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    GREENFIELD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL HONORED BY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

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                         HON. WILLIAM J. COYNE

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 20, 1998

  Mr. COYNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commend the students, faculty, and 
administration of Greenfield Elementary School, whose outstanding 
performance was recently honored by the Department of Education and the 
National Association of State Coordinators of Compensatory Education. 
Greenfield Elementary is one of only 109 schools nationwide to be 
recognized by the Title I Recognition Program. The Title Recognition 
Program honors schools that have set and reached high student 
achievement goals, fostered professional development, and built 
partnerships with parents and the community.
  Greenfield Elementary School is a great example of what our public 
schools can accomplish with a lot of effort and some additional 
resources. Eighty percent of Greenfield's students are eligible for 
free or reduced price lunches. Their ethnically diverse student body is 
65% African-American and 20% foreign-born. 95% of the students are 
bused to school. Title I has allowed the school to reduce its first-
grade class size to 18 students and provide instructional assistants to 
all grade levels. The people there believe this lower adult-to-child 
ration, which increases the interactions children have with caring and 
sensitive adults, is critical to creating a productive learning 
environment.
  The results at Greenfield are impressive. The children are in school 
91% of the time. They are ranked among the top five schools in the 
district in communications and mathematics. They have used the 
diversity of their student body as a teaching resource, which allows 
students to learn about other countries, places, and customs.
  I applaud Greenfield Elementary School for its accomplishments. I 
know their success is a result of a great deal of hard work by 
teachers, students, administrators, parents, and the Pittsburgh 
community.

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