"The state received more money ... to help students meet the No Child Left Behind Act. The U.S. Department of Education announced the three-year grant and presented $898,588 of the funds... . Donna Foxley says the goal is to make advanced placement courses more accessible to low-income students. The Anchorage, Fairbanks, Yukon-Koyukuk and Kuspuk school districts will benefit.

"Students in an AP class at Bartlett High School were the first to hear about the grant and they could not have been happier. ‘There needs to be an academic revolution and AP’s kind of helping things out with that,’ Bartlett AP student Cody Woodard said."

"Garner school officials had a reason to celebrate Wed., May 11 as the U.S. Department of Education’s Kathryn Doherty announced a $1.3 million federal No Child Left Behind grant awarded to the Wake County Public School System and presented Superintendent Bill McNeal with a $495,414 check at North Garner Middle School last week. ‘Wake County is one of only 13 districts across the nation receiving this grant,’ said Doherty, WCPSS special assistant in the office of elementary and secondary education. ‘The department is pleased to fund your efforts for Project Quest.’

"The purpose of the No Child Left Behind Advanced Placement (AP) Incentive Grant is to help increase students’ participation and achievement in higher-level courses at East Garner Magnet Middle School, North Garner Middle School and Garner Magnet High School. The schools were eligible for the grant due to their high concentration of low-income students. According to WCPSS, the project’s over-all purpose is ‘to ensure that avenues of success remain open to low-income students who, absent intervention, may have little or no chance of reaching high levels in high school, therefore decreasing their chances of going on to post-secondary education.’

"‘We’ve created a culture of high expectations,’ said McNeal. ‘By taking more rigorous classes, students will be better prepared for high school, college and life. We want all our students to live out the mission of the Wake County Public School System – to be responsible and productive citizens who can effectively manage future challenges.’ McNeal explained that the grant, locally called Project Quest, will help improve the overall school climate, strengthen student, family and community educational aspirations, strengthen the professional skills of the teaching force and increase the involvement of the business community in mentoring low-income students." – Garner News (May 18, 2005)