The Bank of America Foundation has announced a five-year, $1 million grant program to support teacher education programs at United Negro College Fund affiliate schools nationwide.

The program's first year will provide $50,000 grants to four colleges: Benedict College in Columbia, S.C.; Huston-Tillotson College in Austin, Texas; LeMoyne-Owen College in Memphis, Tenn.; and Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Ark.

Overall, the programs supported seek to align each school's teacher education curriculum with new national teacher standards and state licensing requirements.

Earlier this year, the Bank of America Foundation, which directs charitable giving on behalf of BankAmerica Corp., announced its $100 million charitable giving budget for 1999. In addition to education, other main categories of giving for the foundation are health and human services, community development, and arts and culture.

Since its inception in 1944, the United Negro College Fund has raised more than $1.4 billion for its member institutions. The fund estimates that 40 percent of students attending its affiliate schools are the first in their families to attend college.