State in race for U.S. education grants - Broward - MiamiHerald.com

State in race for U.S. education grants - Broward - MiamiHerald.com

SCHOOLS
State in race for U.S. education grants


Florida stands to gain $350 million to $700 million in the Race to the Top competition, which officially kicked off Thursday.
BY HANNAH SAMPSON

HSAMPSON@MIAMIHERALD.COM

Aaaand, they're off.
With Thursday's starting gun signaling the first day of the $4.35 billion federal Race to the Top contest, states are scrambling to perfect their applications in time for the mid-January deadline.
The money, which states are not guaranteed to get, is being touted as the ``largest-ever federal investment in school reform.''
In Florida, one of four large states that have the potential to get the most funding, education officials say they have been soliciting input from stakeholders on their application for months.
The state -- along with similarly large and populous California, Texas and New York -- could potentially receive $350 million to $700 million.
Florida Education Commissioner Eric Smith called the money ``an unprecedented opportunity for education reform in our nation.''
He continued in a written statement: ``I believe Florida is well poised to create an application that stands out among the competition.''
`TOUGH TIME'
In a conference call with media, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said Thursday that he anticipates a ``vigorous competition.''
``I think we're going to have a very, very tough time picking between some very competitive applications,'' he said.
In their grant applications, states must show how they have been successful in the past and demonstrate plans for reform in the following areas:
• Standards and assessments.
• Effective educators.
• Educational data systems.
• Reform for the lowest-performing schools.
States also must use several measures to evaluate teachers and principals, including student achievement gains.
Duncan said states need to be willing to challenge the status quo if they want to receive the grant money. ``More of the same is not going to get us as a country where we want to go,'' he said.
There will be two rounds of competition. Winners for the first will be announced in the spring, and the second round of applications will be due June 1, with winners announced by Sept. 30.
Of the $4.35 billion, up to $350 million will be put aside to help states create tests with common standards.
Smith told The Miami Herald's editorial board last month that about half of the money from Race to the Top in Florida would flow from the state to school districts and half would stay at the state level.
The Florida Department of Education has considered asking for funds to make its well-regarded student data more accessible to parents and teachers.
Innovation at the district level will largely depend on schools officials and teachers unions making choices about how to make sometimes sweeping changes to how they do business, like how they hire, evaluate and fire teachers.
Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said he considers the Race to the Top funds more important in the long run than the state stabilization funds, which are being distributed separately.
``It provides a competitive opportunity to reform through innovation,'' he said.
`WELL POSITIONED'
Carvalho said he was pleased to see Florida included in the group of states qualifying for the greatest funding levels.
``Based on the progress made by low-performing schools and the long-term vision of school districts and the state, Florida is well positioned as a competitor under Race to the Top,'' he said.
One of the ideas for the application that Carvalho provided to state officials was his Beyond the Bell initiative, which allows students to do additional class work from home on district-issued computers.
Broward Superintendent Jim Notter also said officials should focus on technology to expand the regular learning hours.
``I don't believe we have to reinvent the wheel,'' Notter said.
He said it was ``essential'' for Florida to get money in the first round of grants. ``In order to allow the reforms that we're working on to actually root and be able to grow after the money's gone, we need these additional funds,'' he said.
Miami Herald staff writers Patricia Mazzei and Kathleen McGrory contributed to this report.


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