When Edward Rodriguez received an e-mail from a high school student who couldn't wait to take an Advanced Placement course, he felt that he had succeeded.
Rodriguez is the executive director of Rewarding Achievement (REACH), a philanthropic program created by the Council of Urban Professionals in New York City that works with public high schools to give students monetary rewards for passing AP exams.
Going into effect for the first time this year, the program is aimed at minority students who might otherwise have little incentive to take an AP course, let alone go through with the rigorous exams.
Rodriguez, a Puerto Rican who grew up in the Bronx, said REACH is an opportunity for black and Hispanic students to get involved in an academic program that has been mostly reserved for suburban high schools.
"AP isn't an elitist program, it's just exposure to college-level work," he said. "If we believe that African-American and Latino kids are willing to work hard - and I believe that they are willing to do so - it should be incumbent upon every school to provide that opportunity for children."
The program uses $1 million in seed funding from the Pershing Square Foundation to give students cash rewards of $500 for receiving a 3 on an exam, $750 for a score of 4 and $1,000 for earning a 5, the highest possible score.
Thirty-one private and public New York City schools have signed on to become a part of REACH.
New York City Department of Education Chancellor Joel Klein said he signed onto the program because he believes that minority student success in AP courses could and should be improved.
"I applaud the innovation of the REACH program and am grateful to the Council of Urban Professionals and its supporters for stepping up to tackle the critical goal of increasing the number of students who succeed on Advanced Placement tests."
Canarsie High School in Brooklyn, with a student population that's 84 percent black and 11 percent Hispanic, is one of the 25 public high schools that chose to participate in the program.
Canarsie has a 47 percent graduation rate, making it a prime example of the kind of school targeted by the REACH program.
"I hope the students will see that hard work pays off," said Canarsie Principal Tyona Washington of her expectations for the program. "I want our students to be prepared for higher learning and succeed in college."
REACH has fielded criticism from opponents who argue that paying students for academic achievement cheapens the idea of learning for the sake of learning.
"Once you start paying people to do things, there's no way of backing down from that expectation," said Heather Mac Donald, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research.
"This principle is going to spread - why not pay people to go to class or pay people to turn in homework?"
Rodriguez said he has received many e-mails from both students and parents who look forward to participating in REACH, and Washington said she has heard no criticism from her student body.
"As educators we have to continue to find ways to motivate and reward academic achievement," she said. "I wish this program was around when I was in high school."
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