Every Thursday, REL-NEI highlights state-based resources, press releases, and news around the Northeast and Islands Region related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). For a listing of REL Issues & Answers Reports categorized under ARRA topics and domains, click here.
States Adopt Ed Reform to Ready for Race to the Top
With the initial round of applications for the federal Race to the Top (RTTT) $4.35 billion competitive grant program due on January 19th, states across the Northeast and Islands Region and the country are finalizing education reform bills and adopting policies to strengthen their applications. In Massachusetts, the state House of Representatives passed a bill early January 7th that
“aims to overhaul the state’s worst schools and expand charter schools,” according to an article in The Boston Globe, which also reports that the bill will “help better position the state to qualify for about $250 million in new federal stimulus money reserved for states that aggressively work to make over their worst schools.” Both the House and the state Senate are expected to vote on a final bill by the middle of next week.
Other media coverage of state posturing for RTTT funds include:
- A January 6th article in EdWeek that includes information about Maine and New York;
- A January 1st Danbury News-Times article about Connecticut Education Commissioner Mark McQuillan’s plans if the state receives a first-round RTTT grant, estimated between $60 million and $175 million;
- A December 21st Providence Journal article about Rhode Island Education Commissioner Deborah Gist’s plan to transform the state’s “chronically underperforming urban schools;” and
- A December 15th Kennebec Journal story and a December 30th report by the Maine Public Broadcasting Network about Maine Gov. John Baldacci’s push for “innovative schools.”
State education departments also are using their websites to post news about education reform and RTTT applications.
On December 24th, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) posted a document containing “Frequently Asked Questions about Massachusetts’ Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Race to the Top.” Local school districts must sign an MOU by January 13th, 2009, to be eligible for RTTT funding. On December 21st, the DESE posted (Excel) the current federal stimulus allocations to local school districts, as of December 17th.
Connecticut Education Commissioner McQuillan announced on December 22nd that the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) was preparing a major, statewide grant application for the highly competitive RTTT funds. Since August 2009, CSDE staff members have been working to respond to complex requirements of the grant program. Teams of local superintendents, other education leaders, university and business representatives, and teachers have been called together to help fashion Connecticut’s proposal for public school reform.
New York Education Commissioner David Steiner on December 14th released his “Agenda for Education Reform in New York State,” focusing on
addressing standards, curriculum, instruction, and assessments. Also in New York, on January 6th, the State Department of Education (NYSED) announced that the deadline for reporting by all ARRA sub-recipients has been extended until January 11th, 2010. The department also posted (Excel) the “List of Missing Reports by ARRA Sub-Recipient.”
In Puerto Rico, on December 14th, the Federal Office of Fiscal Responsibility announced that Puerto Rico is one of six jurisdictions being classified as “high risk” by the federal Education Department. This announcement puts in danger thousands of millions of dollars from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Puerto Rico is one of 18 jurisdictions in the United States that will receive visits from Education Department monitors regarding the use of funds. The visit is scheduled for March 15–19th.
For more information, visit these ARRA-related websites across the Northeast and Islands Region:
U.S. Department of Education
http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/index.html
State Recovery Sites
http://www.recovery.gov/?q=content/state-local-tribal-and-territorial-resources
State Education Agency Recovery Sites
Education Week’s “Schools and the Stimulus”
http://www.edweek.org/ew/collections/schools-stimulus/index.html
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