Citibank, a member of Citigroup, is pleased to announce that it is launching its award-winning Citigroup Success Fund grant program to enhance the educational experience for students on Long Island. Made possible through support from the Citigroup Foundation, the Citigroup Success Fund program awards grants ranging between $200 and $1,200 to educators who have innovative teaching ideas that can be developed into easily replicable, grassroots programs aimed at helping students learn.

Teachers from more than 128 local schools have been invited to a breakfast being hosted by Citibank at 150 Motor Parkway in Hauppauge on Friday, December 3, beginning at 8:30AM. During the breakfast, teachers will be given information on applying for a grant from the Citigroup Success Fund. Media are invited to attend the breakfast and should RVSP in advance to Helen Steblecki, 718-248-4694.

"Citibank is committed to helping make each community where we have operations a better place and one of the ways we do this is by supporting education-related initiatives," said Diane Lazuta, Regional Manager for Citibank on Long Island. "Education enables children to realize their fullest potential and achieve their dreams. We are pleased to provide these Success Fund grants and know that the investment made in exploring our local educators' teaching ideas will benefit our children for many years to come."

The new Citigroup Success Fund program will be administered by the Mentoring Partnership of Long Island, a nonprofit organization, with a $34,000 grant from the Citigroup Foundation. In addition, Citibank's Financial Centers and employees on Long Island will be involved to help to ensure the program's success.

The educational priorities established to qualify for Citigroup Success Fund grants are: Literacy, Financial Education, Alternative Learning Styles for Low-Performing Students, English as a Second Language, Interdisciplinary Learning, and Character Education and Tolerance of Diverse Cultures.

The Citigroup Success Fund was first launched in Florida in 1987, where it has been recognized by the Department of Education. The Citigroup Success Fund grant program is also available in California, Florida, Nevada, New York City, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. In 2003, the Citigroup Foundation provided grants totaling $996,600 to support these Success Fund programs giving thousands of teachers the opportunity to put their great ideas into action and share them with other educators.

Citibank is a member of Citigroup (NYSE: C), the preeminent global financial services company that has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, insurance, securities brokerage, and asset management. Major brand names under Citigroup's trademark red umbrella include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney, Banamex, and Travelers Life and Annuity. The Citigroup Foundation focuses its grants primarily in three areas: financial education, educating the next generation, and building communities and entrepreneurs. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com.