The U.S. Department of Education released state-specific reports profiling first-year progress on comprehensive education reform under Race to the Top. The reports document reform efforts underway in Delaware, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Tennessee, the 12 grantees that secured Race to the Top funding in 2010 through the competition's first two phases.

"Race to the Top states have made tremendous strides in this first year," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. "These twelve states have acted with courage and commitment in taking on ambitious education reform. Their year one work has helped lay the foundation for long-term, statewide improvements centered on doing what's best for students."

The 12 state-specific reports provide summaries of accomplishments made and setbacks experienced by states in pursuing reforms around Race to the Top's four assurance areas—raising academic standards, building robust data systems to improve instruction, supporting great teachers and school leaders, and turning around persistently low-performing schools.

State reports offer transparent and detailed accounts of work accomplished in year one measured against first-year plans outlined in the Race to the Top applications. Each report and progress achieved is unique to a state's plan with some grantees using year one to engage stakeholders, secure contracts or establish partnerships that will help implement large-scale reforms in years two through four, while others have put into place new systems or policies that have already reached districts or schools within their state.

Throughout year one, the Department's Implementation and Support Unit (ISU) partnered with states' Race to the Top teams to track progress and offer feedback, guidance and overall support for their reform work. As state plans encountered delays and obstacles, the Department worked with grantees to thoroughly and thoughtfully review, discuss and approve changes to timelines and budgets that help states move forward with their Race to the Top work.

"These twelve states created aggressive plans that set a high bar for reform, setting out to accomplish extraordinarily tough work that comes with its share of challenges" added Duncan. "We are supporting states to help them achieve their goals. At the same time, we will hold them accountable for those commitments."

Year one Race to the Top reports were drafted by ISU officials. Annual reports will be available again in years 2 and 3 along with a final report in year 4 to provide transparent and ongoing updates on progress.

To date, a total of 21 states and D.C. have been awarded grants through three phases of Race to the Top, which includes the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge Fund. These states serve 65 percent of the nation's children and 59 percent of the low-income students in the country.
In the final omnibus spending bill for fiscal year 2012, Congress provided an additional $550 million for Race to the Top. The bill includes language that will allow the Department to create a district-level competition and continue the Early Learning Challenge.

To read the reports, visit http://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop/performance.html#state-reports.

The U.S. Department of Education announced that seven states—Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania—will each receive a share of the $200 million in Race to the Top Round 3 (RTT3) fund to advance targeted K-12 reforms aimed at improving student achievement.

“These seven states are now among 22 Race to the Top winners spread out across the country that are investing in key education reforms to prepare more students for college and careers,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. “Race to the Top has been a pivotal program that has generated more progress in improving our nation’s education system over the last three years than we’ve seen over the last decade. We look forward to partnering with these states to continue this important work."

The 21 states and D.C. have been awarded grants through three rounds of Race to the Top, which includes the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge Fund. In addition to the states awarded today, Race to the Top winners are California, Delaware, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Washington. These states serve 65 percent of the nation’s children and 59 percent of the low-income students in the country.

As runners-up in the last year’s Race to the Top competitions, nine states were eligible for round three awards to invest in a portion of their round two plans. However, South Carolina opted out and California submitted an incomplete application.

RTT3 focuses on supporting efforts to leverage comprehensive statewide reform, while also improving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. The seven winning applications include commitments to enhance data systems, raise academic standards, improve principal and teacher support and evaluation systems and implement school interventions in underperforming schools.

Congress recently passed an omnibus spending bill for fiscal year 2012 that includes an additional $550 million for Race to the Top. The bill includes language that will allow the Department to create a district-level competition and continue the investment in the Early Learning Challenge.

Visit http://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop/phase3-resources.html for more information.

California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Washington state will share $500 million in grant money won in the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge grant competition, the Obama administration announced Friday.

In addition to the $500 million awarded to Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge grantees, seven states—Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania—have applied for a share of the $200 million to invest in K-12 education reform. Awards will be announced later in December.

"Education must be our national mission," said President Barack Obama. "All of us must work to give all our children the best education possible. And today, we're acting to strengthen early childhood education to better prepare our youngest children for success in school and in life"

Domestic Policy Council Director Melody Barnes, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius made the announcement of state grantees on Friday, December 16, at a White House event with over 100 early learning and development experts, educators, policymakers, and researchers. Rich Long, the International Reading Association’s Director of Government Relations, attended the meeting at the White House on December 16. Read his comments on the IRA advocacy webpage.

"In a matter of months, early education and child development experts throughout the country, together with state and local leaders, worked to build comprehensive plans for expanding access to high-quality early learning," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. "All applicants showed tremendous dedication and drive to build stronger foundations and create greater opportunities for more children. Their work will help lead the way in ensuring excellent early learning and support for every child."

"A strong educational system is critical not just for our children but also for our nation's economic future," said U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. "The Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge takes a holistic approach to early education, promotes innovation, and focuses on what it takes to help put young children on the path of learning, opportunity, and success."

Studies show that children who attend quality early education programs do better in school, are less likely to spend time in prison later, and to make more money as adults. But children from low-income families who start kindergarten without any schooling are estimated to start school 18 months behind their peers, a gap that is extremely difficult to overcome.

The U. S. Education Department website has the winning states’ applications. For more information about the program, visit http://www.ed.gov.

State Waiver Applications on CEP Website

Legislative Hot Topic from the International Reading Association Government Relations Department

Literacy Advocacy Legislative Workshops and Webinars

In early December, National Education Association (NEA) President Dennis Van Roekel announced a new action agenda that will help advance the Association’s goals of transforming the teaching profession and accelerating student learning.

Incorporating proven best practices from thousands of leading teachers from around the country, and input from an independent Commission on Effective Teachers and Teaching, Van Roekel detailed three major strategies that will guide the union’s efforts to increase the quality of teacher candidates before they ever reach the classroom, to make sure that teachers remain at the top of their game throughout their careers, and to improve student learning by improving the teaching profession.

The plan for reform, entitled “Leading the Profession,” is available on the NEA website. For more information about NEA, visit www.nea.org.

NAEP Reading Scores Released

Advocacy, Legislation, and Policy News and Events

Research Resources from the International Reading Association

The Center on Education Policy (CEP) created an NCLB/ESEA Waiver Watch webpage to track state waiver applications.

On August 8, 2011, President Obama directed the Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, to “move forward with plans to provide flexibility to states,” which are looking for greater relief under the No Child Left Behind law. Since this announcement, the Center on Education Policy began tracking current developments relating to the federal government’s decision to offer regulatory flexibility from some provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), most recently amended in 2002 by the No Child Left Behind Act.

The U.S. Department of Education has many options available to provide flexibility to states, including waivers of statutory and regulatory provisions as well as amendments to state accountability plans. As of November 18, 2011, 39 states plus Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. have submitted letters expressing intent to apply for flexibility through ED’s formal application process.

For more information, visit the CEP website at www.cep-dc.org.