NEW YORK, Sept. 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Harold (Terry) McGraw III, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of McGraw Hill Financial, today announced the winners of the 2013 Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education (the Prize). This year's Prize, which is in its 26th year, honors those who have made significant strides in the fight to make a college education an achievable dream for the next generation:

• Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin, founders of The Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) Foundation, a national network of public charter schools that has successfully prepared students from low-income neighborhoods to go to college;
• Deborah Bial, founder and president of The Posse Foundation, a nonprofit that identifies and recruits thousands of low-income and minority public high school students across the nation and sends them in "posses," or mutually supportive teams, to selective colleges and universities; and
• Shirley Reed, PhD, founder and president of South Texas Community College, a community college located in McAllen, Texas, on the Mexican border that has grown from 1,000 to 30,000 mostly Hispanic students since 1994.  Dr. Reed created a highly successful system of Dual Enrollment Programs in South Texas community high schools.

These winners were selected for their significant contributions to the task of increasing the flow of students from disadvantaged backgrounds into postsecondary education.

"The Prize honors those who have earned the moniker of education innovators," said Mr. McGraw. "This year's recipients embody extraordinary achievement in American higher education. These leaders have devoted themselves to helping the next generation to gain access to college, to persist in their studies and to emerge with college degrees.

At a time when other countries have passed America in the race of educational attainment and when 90 percent of today's fastest-growing jobs require postsecondary education, we must regain our global leadership in the proportion of our young people who gain access to – and succeed in – higher education. I am delighted that the 2013 McGraw Prize in Education winners have distinguished themselves in this cause."

Honorees are chosen by a distinguished, independent board of judges from the education community.  Each winner will be presented with a $50,000 prize during the gala awards ceremony on Sept. 24, 2013, to be held in the New York Public Library.

Additional information on the 2013 winners can be found here: http://www.mhfi.com/about/mcgraw-prize/winners.

In addition, McGraw Hill Financial will host a discussion of this year's theme with education leaders and several of the 2013 recipients during a Twitter Chat on Thursday, Sept. 19, starting at 11:30 a.m. ET.  Participants will discuss the importance of a college degree in today's economy and the impact of college readiness and completion on both individuals and communities as a whole.

The following hashtag will be used for the discussion and for live tweets from the awards ceremony:  #MHPrize.

The Prize annually recognizes outstanding individuals who have dedicated themselves to education innovation.  The Prize was established in 1988 to honor the late Harold W. McGraw, Jr.'s lifelong commitment to education, and to mark the Company's 100th anniversary.  Former Prize recipients include leaders in community-based education, such as Harlem Children's Zone Founder Geoffrey Canada; business leaders, including retired Chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin Corporation Norman Augustine; journalists such as John Merrow of "PBS Newshour;" classroom teachers like Reynauld Smith of Washington, D.C.; and other innovators, including Teach for America Founder Wendy Kopp. 

You can download photos and learn more about the Prize winners online. Visit McGraw Hill Financial's YouTube channel on Sept. 25 to watch videos of the Prize winners.

Connect with McGraw Hill Financial on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, and join the ongoing discussion via #MHPrize on Twitter.

About McGraw Hill Financial:
McGraw Hill Financial (NYSE: MHFI) is a leading financial intelligence company providing the global capital and commodity markets with independent benchmarks, credit ratings, portfolio and enterprise risk solutions, and analytics. The Company's iconic brands include: Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, S&P Capital IQ, S&P Dow Jones Indices, Platts, CRISIL, J.D. Power, and McGraw Hill Construction. The Company has approximately 17,000 employees in 27 countries. Additional information is available at www.mhfi.com.

SOURCE McGraw Hill Financial