Governor Perdue Announces Governor's Cup Details

Atlanta - Governor Sonny Perdue today announced the details of his new SAT competition, the Governor's Cup. The Governor's Cup is a statewide program aimed at improving SAT scores.

"I promised the people of Georgia I would not settle for having SAT scores that rank 50th in the nation because we all know that our education system is better than what these scores reflect," Perdue said. "However, we also know that our education system does need improvement, and this competition will take us further down the path toward educational success."

The Governor's Cup challenge will be based on high school athletic regions and classifications previously assigned by the Georgia High School Association. A Regional Champion trophy and $1,000 grant will be awarded to the forty high schools that have the largest numerical improvement in SAT scores in their region over the next academic year. Regional winners will advance to the class competition.

Each of the five high schools that win their respective classes will be awarded a Governor's Cup trophy and receive a $2,000 grant. In addition, the five class champions will be featured on a television program that will highlight the unique strategies used to improve their SAT scores. Students taking the test from the five class winning high schools will also receive tickets to an Atlanta Braves baseball game at Turner Field.

Turner Broadcasting is the primary sponsor of the competition and will be funding the regional and class grants, which will be used for SAT preparation classes and materials. Turner is also demonstrating their commitment to educational excellence by donating a SAT Preparation CD-ROM to each high school in the competition. This gift will enable students to access yet another resource to improve their SAT scores.

"I want to thank Turner Broadcasting for their commitment to the Governor's Cup challenge," said Perdue. "We are using friendly competition to spur a renewed attentiveness to SAT success, and I know that Georgia students and educators will rise to this challenge."

Turner executives and State Superintendent Kathy Cox were present at the announcement, which was made at Grady High School in Atlanta. Cox took the opportunity to voice her support for the Governor's Cup and highlight a host of initiatives that she and her staff are implementing, including recently hiring a SAT coordinator and making PSAT exams, a proven forecaster of performance on the SAT, more ubiquitous.

"The Governor's Cup taps into our true spirit of competition in an effort to get students focused on improving their SAT scores." Cox said. "It also supports the mission of the Georgia Department of Education - to lead the nation in improving student achievement."

For more information on the Governor's Cup, please see www.SATrocks.com. Rules for the Governor's Cup are attached.

Rules for the Governor's Cup

1. All high schools that are members of the Georgia High School Association are eligible to win.
2. Schools will compete in the Classification and Region as previously assigned by the Georgia High School Association.
3. Winners are determined by the largest numerical increase in average SAT scores.
4. Average SAT scores for each school will be computed as the highest verbal score and highest math score for each student earned during the September to August testing period.
5. The winning high school in each Region will receive a trophy and a $1,000 grant.
6. The winning high school in each Classification will win the Governor's Cup, be featured on a television show, and receive a $2,000 grant. Students taking the test and educators from these five schools will receive tickets to an Atlanta Braves game at Turner Field.
7. To be eligible to win, the high school must have at least 20 students take the SAT in both years from which comparisons can be made.