The Pittsburgh school board last night voted to accept a $40 million teacher-effectiveness grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, clearing the way for a new chapter in the district's four-year-old improvement campaign.

"This is an historic moment for the Pittsburgh Public Schools," board President Theresa Colaizzi said of the grant, described as the largest-ever given directly to the district.

Two representatives of the Seattle-based foundation were on hand to observe the vote. In all, the foundation today is expected to announce four grants for teacher-effectiveness initiatives nationwide.

Pittsburgh's proposal was jointly developed by the district and the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers. Now, implementation will require not only continued cooperation of union leadership, but the support of union members, who would have to approve new pay structures and other changes before the plan could be fully implemented.

"Gates knew that," union President John Tarka said, adding that he believes the district's history of labor peace -- teachers have not gone on strike in more than 30 years -- helped build the foundation's confidence in the district.

The school board accepted the grant with an 8-0 vote. Mark Brentley Sr. abstained, saying he welcomed the grant but didn't want the district to lose sight of concerns he had raised about Superintendent Mark Roosevelt's previous improvement initiatives.

Board members gave Mr. Roosevelt's staff a standing ovation for winning the support of one of the nation's most influential philanthropies. Mr. Roosevelt thanked the board, his staff and Mr. Tarka, then said the opportunity for a sea change in the district's instructional culture had come.

"Let's just do it," Mr. Roosevelt said.

In all, the district plans to spend more than $85 million over five years on initiatives ranging from performance pay for teachers, to extra pay for those who accept especially challenging duties, to an "academy" that will induct new hires and offer continuing education for veterans.

The district will have to raise $45 million from public and other private sources to complement the $40 million from the Gates Foundation.

The other grant recipients are some Los Angeles charter schools and districts in Hillsborough County, Fla., and Memphis, Tenn.

Hillsborough County, which has about 190,000 students and 240 schools, was awarded $100 million. Memphis, which has about 105,000 students and 210 schools, was awarded $90 million, according to news reports.

Pittsburgh has about 26,120 students and 65 schools. Information on the charter schools was not available.

Pittsburgh's teacher-effectiveness campaign builds on other improvement initiatives carried out the past four years, including the closing of low-performing schools, new curricula and performance pay for administrators.

Mr. Tarka said the teacher-effectiveness proposal is "forward-thinking" but acknowledged that some elements have the potential to be controversial.

It's possible, officials acknowledged, that the Gates Foundation would pull back some money if the union membership fails to approve parts of the plan.

But Mr. Tarka and Mr. Roosevelt accentuated the positive yesterday.

Citing a link between learning environment and student achievement, Mr. Tarka said the union insisted that the plan include initiatives for bringing more order to classrooms -- a component missing from the other applicants' proposals.

Mr. Roosevelt said the proposal positions the district to take advantage of a changing educational landscape. He said the Obama administration has signaled that federal funding will become increasingly competitive and favor districts that hold employees accountable for student achievement.

Looking for more from the Post-Gazette? Join PG+, our members-only web site. You'll get exclusive sports content, opinion, financial information, discounts from retailers and restaurants, and more. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.