By Susannah Mayhall, August 2012
The Department of Education's Race to the Top program, initiated during the Recovery Act as a state competition, espouses four core educational reform areas: implementing student data systems, adopting college- and career-readiness standards and assessments, building teams of effective teachers and principals, and reforming struggling schools. These four priorities have been at the heart of the program's three state-level competitions. In 2011, an additional reform area centered around early learning and development programs was introduced through the Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge, jointly administered by the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services. With the release of the Race to the Top: District Competition (RTT-D), the program enters a new realm of possibilities.
A New Configuration
In May 2012, the Department introduced a new version of the Race to the Top competition, this time opened to local educational agencies (LEAs). Awards totaling $383 million are on the table for this round of funding. The district competition will build on the cornerstone four core reform areas to create personalized learning environments focused on college- and career-readiness, accelerated student achievement and deeper learning, effective educators, and decreased achievement gaps. With only 15-25 grants expected, the competition for this program is expected to be fierce. To gain a competitive edge, applicants should try to address both the required Absolute Priorities and the Competitive Preference Priority, which focuses on public and private partnerships and integrated services.
Priority Projects
All applicants must respond to the first Absolute Priority: Personalized Learning Environments. This priority encompasses multiple facets of the educational environment, from infrastructure and capacity to teacher supports to personalized learning trajectories that include both rigorous study in the core standards and opportunities to explore students' areas of personal academic interest. Successful applicants will take a broad approach to education reform, demonstrating capacity to implement change and innovative plans for achieving student and teacher success.
Potential Contenders
Eligible applicants for this program include local educational agencies (LEAs) and consortia of LEAs. LEAs may apply for all or a portion of their schools, for specific grades, or for subject area bands such as lowest-performing schools, secondary schools, feeder pattern, middle school math, or preschool through third grade. In addition, LEAs from one or more states may apply as a consortium; however, individual LEAs may not be involved in more than one Race to the Top District application. Additional requirements include a required total program impact of at least 2,000 students. To preclude smaller districts from being excluded from the competition, the Department has allowed for consortia of at least ten smaller districts that do not meet the 2,000-student threshold to apply. However, with applications due October 30, this impact requirement may very well result in a competition comprised mostly of larger school districts. Despite this probability, the solicitation's unique priority setup (priorities 2-5 serve strictly as objective district identifiers rather than programmatic aims), the Department may use applicants' rurality and/or their states' participation (or lack thereof) in Race to the Top to even out the playing field to some extent.
Gearing Up
Interested applicants should begin mapping out their proposed projects as soon as possible. Letters of intent, though not required, are strongly encouraged. Prior to submitting a notification of intent to apply, applicants must determine whether they are applying as an individual LEA or as part of a consortium and what their anticipated budget request will be. The web-based notification of intent form is due August 30, 2012. The Department anticipates publishing a summary of the letters of intent online. Would-be applicants are also encouraged to participate in the Department of Education's technical assistance webinars. For more information on the webinars, visit http://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop-district/resources.html.
Future Impact
With the state approval obstacle removed, freeing districts to apply at-will, this Race to the Top competition is likely to take a very different shape from its predecessors. Additionally, with applications due just days before the contentious November election and awards announced towards the end of the year, this program could play a big role in the future of grants for education, rounding out President Obama's first term and ushering in what's next, whether that be a continuation of the current administration's educational goals or the start of a new roadmap for education funding. Whatever the results, this program is certainly one to watch.