6.25.2008 - 06:42pm ET

(CSRwire) SCHAUMBURG, Ill. - June 25, 2008 - Today the Motorola Foundation announced the first group of Motorola Abraham Lincoln grant recipients. The $750,000 grant program provides funding in two cycles for civic, education and cultural organizations that inspire and educate the public about Lincoln’s life and legacy.

"Motorola established this giving initiative to honor Lincoln's leadership and amazing determination to be educated despite the fact that he had barely a year and a half of formal education," said Eileen Sweeney, director of the Motorola Foundation. "These grant recipients have developed remarkable programs that will sustain Lincoln’s legacy and inspire us all."

Motorola Lincoln Grants fund programs that use innovative curriculum to educate students in the areas of civics, history and social studies and develop programming for the public about Lincoln's life. Grant programs also engage young people and community members in public policy issues with forums and tools to foster debate.

These Motorola Lincoln Grant recipients will explore and celebrate Lincoln's legacy in classrooms, college campuses and communities across the country:

• The Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission in Washington, D.C., will use the grant to support the Lincoln birthday celebration, including a world- class concert and entertainment special in the nation's capital on February 2, 2009.
  
• The Barat Education Foundation in Lake Forest, Ill., will develop and distribute print, online and audio versions of the Abraham Lincoln Primary Source Activity Book for Early Readers in both English and Spanish.
  
• The Chicago History Museum will use its funding to support the Year of Lincoln and the design and opening of the 'Lincoln: The Presidency" and "Benito Juarez" exhibitions.
  
• Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pa., will expand its "House Divided" project to provide online resources and training for teachers nationwide on engaging students in the Lincoln-Douglas debates and the lost world of 19th-century oratory.
  
• Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., will expand the historical significance of the presidential debate taking place on its campus on October 15, 2008, by running 15 dramatic vignettes throughout the day that highlight important moments in U.S. democracy, featuring President Lincoln and other leaders.
  
• The Pegasus Players of Chicago will develop and perform for classes at Senn High School as part of the in-school arts residency program, helping students explore Lincoln's role in civil rights and the 13th, 14th and 15th constitutional amendments.
  
• Thirteen/WNET in New York will provide educational outreach – including classroom materials, online resources and nationwide teacher workshops – to expand the impact of its two-hour "Looking for Lincoln" documentary, which will air in February 2009.
  
• WTTW in Chicago will produce and air "Abraham Lincoln's Illinois" segments that explore and celebrate Lincoln's life and career, highlighting lesser-known stories about the 16th president’s life in Illinois.