The State Education Department reported Thu., Mar. 16, it has awarded more than $6 million in grants to 42 school districts for the My Brother's Keeper Family and Community Engagement Program. Locally, the Hudson City School District will receive $145,500 to support programs intended to increase academic achievement and college and career readiness of boys and young men of color. The program also fosters the development of effective relationships between schools and families to promote student success. In 2014, then President Barack Obama established the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force at the federal level. With the adoption of the 2016–17 New York State budget, New York became the first state to enact the My Brother’s Keeper initiative into law. The Family and Community Engagement Program includes parent advocacy, incorporating the use of mentors to improve student achievement and creating outreach materials in languages spoken in homes so families can learn how to enhance school success for their children, beginning at the earliest ages, through high school and beyond. Read the full press release at NYSED [dot] gov.