U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings joined philanthropist Eli Broad at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., to announce the winner.

“Nothing is more important to the future of this country than giving young people the tools to succeed,” said Secretary Spellings, before opening the envelope that revealed New York City was the 2007 Broad Prize winner.

“With the help of strong, innovative leadership, Broad Prize school districts are proving that if we raise our expectations, our children will rise to the challenge,” Spellings said.

The $1 million Broad (rhymes with “road”) Prize is an annual award that honors large urban school districts that demonstrate the greatest overall performance and improvement in student achievement while reducing achievement gaps among poor and minority students.

Northside officials said the prize money goes directly to graduating 2008 high school seniors for college scholarships.

“Our students are still winners,” said Superinten-dent John Folks, who was in Washington D.C. for the awards ceremony.

“It’s a tremendous honor to be one of five finalists in the nation and to be recognized as one of the best school districts in the United States,” Folks said.

Northside and the three other Broad Prize finalist districts - Bridgeport Public Schools in Connecticut, the Long Beach Unified School District in California and Miami-Dade County Public Schools – each will receive $125,000 in college scholarships for 2008 graduating high school seniors.

This is Northside’s first year as a finalist, and the district will again be eligible next year for the 2008 Broad Prize.

“Northside has expected more of its students – and they have risen to the challenge,” said Eli Broad, founder of The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation.