MINNEAPOLIS -- U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige today joined Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives Director Jim Towey and more than 1,000 leaders of faith-based and community organizations at a White House conference aimed at educating grassroots groups about the federal grants process and how to strengthen the services they offer to the poor in their communities.

"The president is committed to leveling the playing field so that good people who used to get left out of the process can now act on their spiritual and civic-minded conviction to help make a difference in people's lives." Secretary Paige said. "This initiative paves the way for all of us to use our talents to help the less fortunate -- to harness the power of faith and goodwill to transition our great nation and to make America a better place."

The day-long event was sponsored by the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives and the departments of Education, Labor, Justice, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and Agriculture, as well as the Agency for International Development.

"I applaud the efforts of Secretary Paige and the Department of Education to expand and support faith-based and community groups' work to promote educational excellence for all Americans," said Jim Towey. "They demonstrate how government can welcome faith-based organizations as partners in addressing our nation's ills."

President Bush created the Faith-Based and Community Initiative to leverage the contributions of grassroots community and faith-based groups to help meet social service needs across the nation.

The Minneapolis event is the seventh in a series of regional conferences sponsored by the White House to provide participants with information about federal grant programs, the legal requirements that apply to recipients of federal funds and practical information on the grant-writing process, as well as an opportunity to network with federal officials.

The Department of Education's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives focuses specifically on breaking down existing barriers and empowering faith-based and community groups to enlist them to support the department's mission to ensure equal access to education and to promote educational excellence for all children. How these organizations can use federal funds in order to help students succeed in school and close the achievement gap between less fortunate children and their peers.

The No Child Left Behind Act provides these organizations with grant opportunities through several programs, including Supplemental Education Services, Safe and Drug Free Schools Mentoring Programs and 21st Century Community Learning Centers. The department is seeking to recruit the most qualified providers of these services, including faith-based and community groups, without regard to their religion or lack thereof. Federal funds may not be used by an organization for inherently religious activities.

For more information about President Bush's Faith-Based and Community Initiative, including the Education Department's office, please visit www.fbci.gov.

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