federal stimulus
R2T: 40 states + DC apply
Posted on 20. Jan, 2010 by Heather.
Bee-tee-dubs, if you hadn’t already heard, the deadline for round 1 Race to the Top applications was yesterday. In the end, 40 states and the District of Columbia applied (Washington State is vying for round 2).
Find the list of applicants here, along with press conference footage and other items from the White House. Also see news coverage in Education Week.
It doesn’t look like the U.S. Department of Education has posted state applications yet. Applications for other ARRA grant programs (e.g. State Fiscal Stabilization Fund) were posted…
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What’s Washington doing to win Race to the Top dollars?
Posted on 13. Nov, 2009 by Mike.
The Seattle Times covers a very timely story about what our state is doing to win Race to the Top dollars. Yesterday, the final regulations for Race to the Top federal grants was released by the U.S. Department of Education. Below is an excerpt from the article.
Despite the hurdles it faces, Washington does have some strengths to highlight.
In the past legislative session, lawmakers passed a bill to overhaul how the state funds its public schools, which included many of the same ideas the Obama administration is promoting, such as working to ensure all students graduate ready to go to college if they wish.
It also is further along than many states with the kind of data systems that Duncan has said he wants to see. Gregoire also said Duncan was impressed that Washington pays $5,000 bonuses to teachers who successfully complete the rigorous National Board Certification program.
That’s one way to reward teachers that the teachers union here supports.
Gregoire said Tuesday that she’s been talking with teachers union president Mary Lindquist and with Randy Dorn, the state’s top education official, about a legislative package for the upcoming session that starts in January.
Click here to read the full article.
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Have an innovative idea?
Posted on 06. Oct, 2009 by Mike.
Calling all public schools and non-profits!
The U.S. Department of Education today released details on its $650 million Investing in Innovation Fund, which is part of the historic $5 billion investment in school reform in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
The grants will support new and proven programs that help close the achievement gap and improve outcomes for students.
School districts can apply for the grants, and non-profits can form partnerships with schools to submit applications.
Grants would be awarded in three categories:
- Scale-up Grants: The largest possible grant category is focused on programs and practices with the potential to reach hundreds of thousands of students. Applicants must have a strong base of evidence that their program has had a significant effect on improving student achievement.
- Validation Grants: Existing, promising programs that have good evidence of their impact and are ready to improve their evidence base while expanding in their own and other communities.
- Development Grants: The smallest grant level designed to support new and high-potential practices whose impact should be studied further.
For more information, view the Dept. of Education’s press release.
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Washington State can’t sit on sidelines.
Posted on 17. Aug, 2009 by Kelly.
Washington’s kids deserve the very best education in the nation.
That’s why we’re calling on elected officials to ensure our state doesn’t sit on the sidelines and miss out on its share of Race to the Top funds.
Read LEV Foundation’s report, Using Stimulus to Drive Change: Opportunities for Washington State, to learn about how we can be contenders for Race to the Top funds.
Race to the Top provides a historic opportunity to improve our schools and boost student achievement. Washington will compete with other states to receive grants from a $4 billion fund that will drive innovation and reform in our schools.
Washington does meet the minimum requirements for the Race to the Top Fund. However, we need to submit a bold application to ensure Washington is well positioned among the leading contenders.
Read our report, Using Stimulus to Drive Change: Opportunities for Washington State, and make sure to forward it to 5 friends.
Soon, we will need your help to mobilize stakeholders around the innovative concepts that will help improve outcomes for students and shrink achievement gaps.
Stay tuned!
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Race to the Top: We should be #1
Posted on 17. Aug, 2009 by Mike.
KPLU’s Austin Jenkins interviewed State Rep. Reuven Carlyle about our competitiveness for Race to the Top funding. Rep. Carlyle says we should set a goal of being the number one state in winning Race to the Top dollars.
Listen to the full interview here.
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Send me your questions about the stimulus funding and education.
Posted on 27. Feb, 2009 by admin.
Hi all,
We know the stimulus funding is on the way, but we don’t know how much, what’s it’s for, and what problems it will solve.
Well, here is your first step to understanding. I put together a one-page document with all of the funding for education that we will recieve from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and what the funding will be used for. One caveat, this information changes regularly (that’s why you’ll notice a date on my document).
I know you’ll have questions though and I’m here to answer them.
Please send me your questions! I’ll do a video podcast on Monday and answer them for you.
You can comment below or email me at: bonnie@educationvoters.org.
