Van Hollen, Cardin Announce $43,300 Grant for Public Chesapeake Charter Alliance in Lexington Park

U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) have announced a $43,300 grant for the Chesapeake Charter Alliance, a public charter school operator, to purchase new furniture and equipment for the school's kindergarten and second grade classrooms.Located in Lexington Park, it is the only charter school in the southern Maryland tri-county area. Funding is provided through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Economic Initiative Grant Program.

"For our state and our nation to be successful, we need to invest in our children from day one," said Senator Van Hollen, a member of the Senate Appropriations and Budget Committees. "This grant for the public Chesapeake Charter Alliance will help ensure our students have a classroom environment that facilitates learning."

"These funds for the public Chesapeake Charter Alliance are a federal investment in St. Mary's County students, all of whom deserve up-to-date classroom equipment and a learning environment that's conducive to success," said Senator Cardin, a member of the Senate Finance Committee.

The Economic Impact Initiative Grant Program provides funding to assist in the development of essential community facilities in rural communities suffering from unemployment and economic depression. An essential community facility is one that provides an essential service to the local community, is needed for the orderly development of the community, serves a primarily rural area, and does not include private, commercial, or business undertakings.