2 School Districts Each Get $8-Million Grant

Efforts to improve high schools in San Diego and Sacramento got a boost Thursday with the announcement that each city will receive a five-year grant of $8 million from the Carnegie Corp. and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The San Diego and Sacramento unified school districts are among seven nationwide that will share $60 million under the Schools for a New Society program, which requires that the funds be matched locally.

Working with the Center for Research on Educational Equity and Teaching Excellence at UC San Diego, San Diego Unified will focus initially on improving curricula at 18 high schools. It will expand on reforms underway for ninth-graders, including a summer program to raise reading and math skills.