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The Council of the Great City Schools is a coalition of 66 of the nation's largest urban public school systems.

Award Programs

Richard R. Green Award

Each year at its annual fall conference, the Council bestows the Richard R. Green Award upon a past or present school superintendent or Board of Education member. As the nation's highest urban education honor, the award is given in recognition of exceptional contributions to urban schools and students. Sponsored by the Council, ARAMARK Education and Voyager Expanded Learning, the award pays tribute to the memory of Richard R. Green, a former chancellor of New York City Public Schools and superintendent of Minneapolis Public Schools.

At the 2007 Annual Fall Conference in Nashville, Elizabeth Reilinger, chair of the Boston School Committee, received the Richard R. Green Award.

Reilinger was appointed to the school committee in 1994 by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and has been elected chairperson of the Boston School Committee every year since 1998.

The Green Award recipient receives a $10,000 college scholarship to present to a high school senior of the winner's school district or from his or her high school alma mater.

Criteria for selecting the award recipient rest on demonstrations of Dr. Green's leadership principles:

Outstanding support of and service to urban schoolchildren

Development of a special service or program in support of urban school needs

Ongoing significant contributions to urban education through advocacy or programs

Inspiration and motivation of others to contribute to success of urban school students

Positive influence on program development, staff or human development, community support and/or student achievement.

Richard R. Green Award Winners

1989 Harry Davis, Retired Member Minneapolis School Board

1990 Timothy Dyer, Retired Member St. Paul School Board

1990 James Griffin, Retired Member National Association of Secondary School Principals

1991 Paul Huston, Executive Director American Association of School Administrators

1992 Richard Wallace Jr., Superintendent Emeritus Pittsburgh Public Schools

1993 Constance Clayton, Superintendent School District of Philadelphia

1994 Holmes Braddock, Board Member Miami-Dade County Public Schools

1995 Curman Gaines, Superintendent St. Paul Public Schools

1996 James Williams, Superintendent Dayton Public Schools

1997 Maxine Smith, Retired Member Memphis City School Board

1998 Gerry House, Superintendent Memphis City Public Schools

1999 Rod Paige, Superintendent Houston Independent School District

1999 Judith Farmer, Board Member Minneapolis Public Schools

2000 Eric Smith, Superintendent Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools

2001 Barbara Byrd-Bennett, Superintendent Cleveland Municipal School District

2002 John Simpson, Superintendent Norfolk Public Schools

2003 Arthur Griffin, Board Member Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools

2003 Franklin Till, Superintendent Broward County Public Schools

2004 Tom Payzant, Superintendent Boston Public Schools

2005 Anna Dodson, Board Member Norfolk Public Schools

2006 Beverly Hall, Superintendent Atlanta Public Schools

2007 Elizabeth Reilinger, Board Member Boston Public Schools

Queen Smith Award for Commitment to Urban Education

Download 2008 Application

Each year at its annual fall conference, the Council presents the Queen Smith Award for Commitment to Urban Education to an urban school educator who has made significant contributions to education and to the community. Sponsored by the Macmillan/McGraw-Hill Publishing Co., the award is named in memory of the company's late vice president of urban programs.

The winner of the award at the 2007 Fall Conference was Lois Powell Mondesire, principal of Strawberry Mansion High School in Philadelphia.

The Queen Smith Award winner receives $1,000 and the Council is awarded $1,000 for its programs that serve as a models for educating future generations.

Urban Impact Award

The Council of the Great City Colleges of Education, an affiliate group of deans working with urban school leaders, presents the Urban Impact Award each year at the Council's Annual Fall Conference. The award honors an exemplary program between universities and urban school districts that has had a significant impact on teaching and learning, with each receiving $1,000.

At the 2007 Annual Fall Conference, the award was presented to Memphis State University and Memphis City Schools for the Memphis Literacy Academy.