People’s United Community Foundation, the philanthropic arm of People’s United Bank, announced that it has awarded $40,000 to the University of Connecticut Foundation for their CommPACT Schools initiative on school reform.

The grant will support the Neag School of Education’s innovative CommPACT initiative, designed to help close the achievement gap in Connecticut. Under the leadership of the Neag School’s Institute for Urban School Improvement, CommPACT is redesigning eight schools that serve more than 4,000 at-risk students in grades K through 8. The eight schools that will benefit from the grant are: Barnum, Longfellow (Bridgeport); M.D. Fox (Hartford); Davis Street, Hill Central (New Haven); Washington Elementary, and West Side Middle (Waterbury).

“The CommPACT initiative marks a radical departure from the top-down operations typical of school systems,” said John Martin, President of the UConn Foundation. “School reform is accomplished through the collaborative efforts of students, educators, parents, school communities, local and state governing bodies, community-based partners and higher education institutions.”

“We are committed to supporting programs such as the CommPACT Schools initiative to address the statewide achievement gap in Connecticut,” said Hank Mandel, Executive Director, People’s United Community Foundation. “Statistics show an overwhelming number of children in Connecticut are lagging behind the rest of the state and the country, and we will continue to fund initiatives that help improve academic performance in Connecticut.”

Established in 2007, People’s United Community Foundation was formed to help support programs and activities that enhance the quality of life for citizens in the communities that People’s United Bank serves. With special emphasis on programs designed to promote economic self-sufficiency, education and improved conditions for low-income families and neighborhoods, the funding priorities of the Foundation include: community development, youth development and affordable housing.