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Race to the Top - Finalists Announced Today

Race to the Top: By the Numbers

Standards and Assessments

Continue reading "Race to the Top: By the Numbers"....

Democrats for Education Reform Congratulates the 19 Race to the Top, Round 2 finalists

Continue reading "Democrats for Education Reform Congratulates the 19 Race to the Top, Round 2 finalists"....

Twenty education reform groups conveyed their thanks to Senator Bayh, Senator Durbin and 14 others for their steadfast leadership in rejecting the false choice between jobs and reform.

Dear Senator,

We are writing to thank you for standing up for students and demonstrating steadfast resolve against funding an education jobs bill through cuts to vital education reform initiatives like Race to the Top, the Teacher Incentive Fund, and the Charter Schools Program.

Some education interest groups have argued that President Obama's initiatives to drive innovation in, and boost the effectiveness of, state and local education programs should be suspended until the economy improves. We strongly reject that argument.

In a time of resource scarcity, it is more important than ever to ensure that education spending at all levels of government is used as efficiently and effectively as possible. Providing students with a first-rate education must be just as integral a part of any plan for our nation's economic recovery as shoring up state and local budgets.

We ask that you maintain your resolve in the coming weeks if and when the House supplemental appropriations bill containing the $800 million in cuts to education reform is brought up in the Senate, or if similar initiatives are advanced on other legislation. Your continued vision, resolve, and leadership are greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Achievement First

Advance Illinois

Center for American Progress Action Fund

Civic Builders

ConnCAN

Democrats for Education Reform

Education Equality Project

Education Reform Now

The Education Trust

Foundation for Excellence in Education

Hope Street Group

Katherine B. Bradley

KIPP

The Mind Trust

National Alliance for Public Charter Schools

National Council of La Raza

The New Teacher Project

NewSchools Venture Fund

Rodel Foundation of Delaware

SMART Schools

Stand for Children

Thank You - Senator Bayh.pdf

Letter to Chairman Daniel K. Inouye signed by 16 Senators including Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL): Letter to Inouye.7.20.10.pdf

16 Senators send letter to Chairman Daniel K. Inouye rejecting the false choice between jobs and reform.

Oppose Obey Amendment Cuts to Obama Reform Initiatives

Three Candles For DFER

Dear friend:

Three years ago today (June 7th) we stood in New York City and birthed a bouncing baby political advocacy organization called Democrats for Education Reform.

In an incredible 36-month stretch, you have helped us:

-- Direct more than $17 million into political and grassroots advocacy for education reform, creating momentum which has the potential to dominate education policymaking for years to come.

-- Play a leading role in efforts to pass groundbreaking K-12 reform-centered legislation in multiple states, including New York, Colorado, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, and Florida.

-- Lead efforts to frame the fight that is playing out within the Democratic Party on education issues. This successful framing has cleared the way for significant reform efforts stemming from the Obama administration, and filtering down into states all across the map.

-- Establish active DFER outposts in Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Florida, Michigan, Wisconsin, Missouri, and Colorado.  New outposts are in the process of forming in Ohio, Indiana, Tennessee, Oregon, Washington, California, and elsewhere. The effort to spread the reform blanket across as much of the map as possible is done in recognition of the reality that change must be pushed at all levels and all across the map in order to make the most of the current opportunity for reform.

-- Emerge as THE "go-to" voice for the education reform wing of the Democratic Party in press accounts, helping us level the political playing field for reform. Our activists and experts have been quoted in hundreds of mainstream news stories, including regularly in such publications as The New York Times,  Wall Street Journal, Washington Post,  Newsweek, and Education Week. Our voices can be heard regularly on national radio broadcasts, and our envelope-pushing op-eds have appeared in newspapers from coast-to-coast.

-- Assume a leading role (more than any other advocacy group) in pushing the unprecedented "Race To The Top" reform contest on all levels- fighting hard for more than a year to keep the bar raised at the federal level and then, in states, to help clear the bar in as many state capitols as possible.

And so much more.

Continue reading "Three Candles For DFER"....

On Federal Education Funding: Save Jobs, Serve High-Need Populations, Drive Innovation & Boost Effectiveness

States Are Racing!

Just added - see our 3 new Race Smarter briefs: MA, MI, and NJ.

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The Race to the Top Phase 2 application filing deadline is June 1st. Many states, some that applied in Phase 1 and some that did not, have begun to step up legislative, regulatory, and planning action in anticipation. States must send an intent to file for Phase 2 to the U.S. Department of Education by May 4th.

We have re-launched our Race to the Top deadline countdown clock and a series of state-specific Race Smarter briefs at http://www.dfer.org/list/issues/racesmarter/.

Here is the first of a series of weekly updates on state activity. Special thanks to our crack staff, especially Charlie Barone, federal policy director and occasional DFER disc jockey:

Arizona: Despite coming in 40th out of 41 states in Phase 1, Governor Jan Brewer announced today that the state would re-apply in Phase 2. The state seems to be doubly challenged, as it is coming off a toxic legislative run in which it passed a a law that encourages racial profiling of suspected legal immigrants and, in what can only be interpreted as a nod to tea partiers and Obama-hating birthers, a law that requires Presidential candidates to show that they are "constitutionally eligible" for office. The state says it will focus a large part of its efforts on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, toward building the state's 21st century economic competitiveness.

Buena suerte.

http://www.thegovmonitor.com/world_news/united_states/arizona-applies-for-second-round-race-to-the-top-funds-29336.html

Continue reading "States Are Racing!"....

ESEA Blueprint: Plenty of Obstacles, Political and Otherwise

Washington, D.C., March 15, 2010 - The Administration's rollout of its plans for ESEA reauthorization will continue this week as President Obama today officially sends his "blueprint" for NCLB overhaul to the Hill, and Secretary Duncan testifies at no less than three hearings before various Congressional Committees on Wednesday and Thursday.

President Obama devoted his Saturday radio address to his ESEA plan, following "sneak preview" Power Point presentations and briefings with key interest groups and reporters late last week. On Saturday night at 5:00 p.m., the Department electronically distributed the actual 45-page "Blueprint for Reform."

"We are equal parts cautious and optimistic. Overall we see much to like," said Charles Barone, director of federal policy for DFER.

Continued Barone, "Piecing together what's on paper with what we've heard in briefings and conversations with key Administration officials, we think it's a reasonable attempt to maintain a delicate balance between competing aims: to respond to both real and perceived problems with current law; to sustain the law's success in highlighting achievement gaps and to prod state and local reforms to close them; to redouble efforts to improve school leader and teacher effectiveness; and, to fundamentally restructure chronically failing schools.

"The Administration certainly has its work cut out for it. It has to ease discomfort with a law that has identified roughly a third of schools in the U.S. as 'in need of improvement' while at the same time acknowledging that more or less half of all students who graduate high school and enter college require remedial education in reading and math.

Continue reading "ESEA Blueprint: Plenty of Obstacles, Political and Otherwise"....

ESEA Reauthorization: Keep Accountability Strong!

Washington, DC, March 3, 2010 -- Democrats for Education Reform joined a coalition of 18 advocacy, civil rights, and policy study organizations today who submitted a set of recommendations to the President and Congress regarding the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
 
"This statement of principles makes it clear that there is broad support for a new ESEA that invests in fundamental education reform, promotes innovation, builds human capital, and continues to holds schools accountable for results," said Charles Barone, Director of Federal Policy at Democrats for Education Reform. "Part and parcel of this effort must be decisive action to fundamentally restructure schools and school systems that are chronically low-performing."
 
Overall, the group endorses the direction the Obama Administration is taking to school reform. The signees ask the Administration to maintain and elaborate the bright lines in federal law around accountability and teacher quality and effectiveness, and couple that with a competitive grant strategy that invests in and rewards states that are ready, willing, and able to step up their education reform efforts, including reconstituting, restarting, converting, or shutting down the lowest-performing schools.
 
Highlights:
 
NCLB and Race to the Top
 
"We the undersigned believe that even though neither is perfect, ESEA 2002 (NCLB) and Race to the Top are both landmark education reforms that have moved the country's education goals and policies in a markedly positive direction."
 
Accountability
 
States must set annual, measurable, and ambitious goals for the academic performance of all students and for closing achievement gaps between:  1) economically disadvantaged students; 2) students from major racial and ethnic groups; 3) students with disabilities; and 4) students with limited English proficiency, as compared to their non-disadvantaged peers.
 
School Interventions
 
"We embrace the Administration's push to compel increasingly intensive interventions in low-performing schools.
 
"Persistently low-performing schools necessitate fundamental changes in staffing and leadership, including reconstitution, conversion to a charter school, restart, or shutdown. After other approaches have been tried and have failed, these are the only viable options with a reasonable probability of success."
 
Performance-Based Funding

Continue reading "ESEA Reauthorization: Keep Accountability Strong!"....

State Of The Union On Education

Statement on President Obama's First Year

Unfettered by inside-the-beltway partisan politics, President Obama indisputably has affected more change in the nation's education policies in his first year in office than any President in modern history.

The boost that the Administration's Race to the Top initiative - which was accompanied by a record $100 billion increase in general federal aid to education - has given state and local education reform efforts is the Administration's biggest domestic policy success of 2009 - all without yet expending a dime of the $5 billion Race to the Top fund. 

What's more, while not a single Republican Congressman and only 3 Republican Senators voted for the economic and education reform stimulus package last February, the policy initiatives that Obama and Secretary Duncan put forth have since been embraced through both words and action by state and local elected officials in both parties across the ideological and geographical spectrum.

These accomplishments reflect campaign promises kept - in recognition of the relationship between education reform, jobs, and economic growth - to make education one of three key components of a long-term U.S. economic recovery strategy (the other two being energy and health care which obviously, and to say the least, have not fared as well), an augur well for the work on education reform that is yet to come.

Some effects are immediate - for example, more than a hundred thousand slots have already opened to parents across the country who want to choose a high quality public charter school for their children.  Others, such as changes in state academic standards to ensure that students are college and career ready, the development of better tests, more rigorous qualification criteria and better pay for teachers, and fundamental overhauls of chronically failing schools, will pay dividends later this year, and over the next several.

These changes reflect an ongoing and historic realignment in education politics. First, the politics of education reform, at least once one gets outside the Beltway, increasingly have less to do with inter-party politics than with pragmatism and the imperative need to get children out of schools to which no parent would voluntarily choose to send their children.  

Second, and equally important, it represents forward thinking by the President which reflects a broader base of support for real education reform within the Democratic party.  The days when the interests of adults completely overrode those of children and parents, when elected officials not only did some of what they were asked to do by the education establishment but everything they were told, are slowly but surely coming to a close. This is the beginning of the end of monolithic control by powerful interests over education policy that has stymied sensible education reform in the U.S. for decades.

The fights are far from over. While some states that have been historically intransigent to real education reform, such as California, have enacted  ground-breaking policies as part of their Race to the Top effort others, notably New York, succumbed to back room tactics and bullying by lobbyists trying to preserve and defend an educational system that is failing hundreds of thousands of children in that state alone.

Moreover, the real challenges for the Administration, the real tests of its resolve, remain. Especially in an election year, government officials will have to work hard not to succumb to political pressure to reward states that have proven to be unwilling to advance credible and ambitious reforms. A retreat to this old way of doing things in Washington would represent a squandered opportunity of epic proportions.

But if the Administration continues to keep the bar high for Race to the Top, and stays on the path of real change by making major investments only in those states and school districts that have shown the willingness to break out of the old ways of doing things, it will mark a major turning point in U.S. education policy, the effects of which will reverberate for decades.

To download DFER's handy 5-page fact sheet on "Educational Change We Can Believe In", click here.

Racing To The Top! (Updated 1/19/2010)

The U.S. Education Secretary's $5 billion "Race To The Top" Fund, as included in the federal stimulus package, represents a historic opportunity to establish clear reform priorities and to back them up with signifiant resources to bring change to America's schools.

CLICK HERE TO SEE HOW NEW YORK STACKS UP (Updated Jan. 19 2010)

CLICK HERE FOR AN UPDATE ON HOW STATES ARE LINING UP (Updated Jan. 8 2010)

CLICK HERE TO READ DFER'S HANDY RTTP FAQ+A PAPER! (Updated, Dec. 13, 2009)

CLICK HERE TO SEE HOW STATES ARE LINING UP (Updated, Dec. 14, 2009)

Click below for some concepts that DFER supports as part of the Race To The Top competition between states:

-- Race To The Top Issue Brief #1 -  Public Charter Schools and High Quality Pre-K  (June 17, 2009)

-- Race To The Top Issue Brief #2 - Unleashing Innovation In America's Schools (June 18, 2009)

-- Race To The Top Issue Brief #3 - Enhancing Entry Points To The Teaching Profession  (June 19, 2009)

-- Race To The Top Issue Brief #4 - World Class Standards and Assessments  (June 22, 2009)

-- Race To The Top Issue Brief #5 - Growing Innovative Charter Schools (June 23, 2009)

-- Race To The Top Issue Brief #6 - A Great Teacher For Every Child (June 24, 2009) 

"Race to the Top" Hits Its Stride

After months of legislative work around the country, states are scrambling to meet the Jan. 19th deadline for legislative and policy changes as part of the "Race To The Top." What gets negotiated and signed in the next 12 days will largely determine which states cross the finish line with the kind of gusto it is going to take to win some serious federal dinero for public schools.

Since our last update on what states are up to (you can find that tally on our blog, http://www.dfer.org/2009/12/who_would_have.php#more) there have been some rather interesting developments that we wanted to quickly highlight - particularly because they involve some serious policy/political shifts in several key states.

California - Lawmakers there yesterday shifted power away from bureaucrats and foot-dragging school boards and placed it in the hands of parents, passing new "Race To The Top" legislation which allows parents from failing schools to yank their kids out and/or vote as parents to take drastic measures at their local zoned schools. Kudos to our friends, Ben Austin, at Parent Revolution, and Sen. Gloria Romero (our September education reformer of the month - http://www.actblue.com/page/dferseptember09) for their inspiring leadership on this one. The Governator will quickly sign the bills into law to make the Jan. 19th RTTT deadline.

Massachusetts -- Early this morning, the House passed RTTT legislation that will allow Boston school officials to shutter failing schools and convert them to new charter schools, without having to allow the teachers union to decide which schools could and couldn't be closed. Boston Mayor Tom Menino told the Boston Globe "this bill was made in Heaven." (Which probably means we better read the fine print!) The Senate previously passed its version of the RTTT bills and conferencing on the two bills was expected to start today. Legislators were on track to pass the bills into law by Jan. 14th, so that the state would have ample time to prepare its application by the Jan. 19th deadline.

New York -- Regular DFER readers know we have been frustrated for much of the year by the Empire State's unwillingness to take the reform competition seriously - particularly at a time when the state's coffers are beyond bare. But things have been moving quickly in the last month, starting with bold action by the Board of Regents in passing a series of K-12 reform recommendations. The Senate and Assembly are looking at what they can do to allow New York to apply, and earlier today Gov. David Paterson introduced a program bill that would eliminate the cap on charter schools, kill a law that bans using student performance in teacher tenure decisions, and allow the Regents to take control of persistently low-performing schools, among other things. The next week will be very interesting, as New York decides whether it wants to try to take the necessary steps to become a national leader. Stay tuned.

Continue reading ""Race to the Top" Hits Its Stride"....

Racing To The Top

DFER commends Obama Administration and Secretary Duncan for Bold Reform Initiative, but Cautions That Big Test is Yet to Come

Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) commends the Obama Administration and Education Secretary Arne Duncan for their steadfast support of the bold and innovative Race to the Top fund, and supports the new guidelines announced today. DFER hailed those states that have made substantial policy changes in anticipation of Race to the Top, and called out states that have dragged their feet in producing true, ambitious and fundamental reforms.

"Today marks the official start of President Obama's historic Race to the Top school reform initiative," said Joe Williams, executive director of DFER. "In the final guidance, Secretary Duncan has shown that he is dead serious about real school reform and about kicking off a Race to the Top that truly lives up to its title."

"The bright lines from the draft guidelines around issues like the student-teacher data firewall and radically overhauling low-performing schools remain intact. Secretary Duncan has shown he has the political backbone to stand up to indefensible state and local policies and to demand that states change these failed policies if they want to even get to the starting line."

 "At the same time, the Department of Education has bent over backwards to correct misperceptions about Race to the Top priorities around issues like teacher evaluation and charter schools, while making substantive changes based on feedback from educators and administrators. In our opinion, they have struck exactly the right balance; Duncan and his team have shown leadership that is both principled and flexible."

"Race to the Top has catalyzed reform efforts across the country and important steps have already been taken by key states in anticipation of the competition."

"California and Wisconsin have torn down their data firewalls. States like Tennessee, Illinois, and Indiana have lifted their charter school caps. Massachusetts, Kentucky, and other states are in the process of approving more charter-friendly policies. Rhode Island has raised the bar for what it takes to attain a teaching license, and acted to base teacher hiring and promotion on quality rather than seniority."

"In states like Colorado, Delaware, and Louisiana, Race to the Top has galvanized statewide coalitions, who have already begun to develop plans that not only make them competitive for Race to the Top under the guidance issued today - i.e., that they be data-proven, long-term, and sustainable - but also work within Race to the Top's ample flexibility to meet their own specific state needs."

"It is important, however, not to overrate what has happened so far. Many state plans so far are promissory. Some states have simply corrected indefensible policies or made changes that sound good but upon closer observation are less than meets the eye."

'Wisconsin, for example, took down the technical firewall between teachers and student data, but for all intents and purposes still prevents student achievement from being used in teacher evaluations and tenure decisions. New York seems to think it can get by simply by passively letting its firewall law expire and phoning their application in. Some members of New York's political leadership are actually bragging behind the scenes that the fix is in and that they will get a Race to the Top grant regardless of the integrity and ambitiousness of their school reform plan."

Continue reading "Racing To The Top"....

Reform Tidal Wave Washes Up On Rhode Island

Earlier this week, we celebrated New York Assemblyman Sam Hoyt's groundbreaking "Race To The Top" legislation, designed to give New York a shot at even competing for boatloads of federal education cash. Then, we celebrated Michigan Senator Buzz Thomas' "smart cap" legislation, which would unleash the power of successful public charter schools in the Wolverine State (and help them get their hands on boatloads of federal education cash.)

But today, our edu-political crush is fixated on Rhode Island Education Commissioner Deborah Gist, who rocked the Ocean State by declaring an end to all seniority-based teacher assignments.

Yes, you read that correctly.

Stunning. Or at least stunningly common sensical.

Still wondering whether the "Race To The Top" is on or not? (Even the great state of Colorado should be worried about the competition this one, ladies and gentleman...)

According to her office's press release, Gist notified superintendents last night that seniority-based teacher assignments are totally out of line with the state's new "Basic Education Program."

"The new BEP requires that the system of management, professional training, evaluation, and assignment of instructional staff ensures that highly effective educators work with classrooms of students who have significant achievement gaps," Gist wrote. "In my view, no system that bases teacher assignments solely on seniority can comply with this regulation."

This is obviously good news for Rhode Island students (and even better news for the the law firms that will be paid handsomely to fight this out to protect existing seniority-based teacher assignments?)

Congrats to Commissioner Gist and her team for jumping so strongly into the race!

More info here: http://www.ride.ri.gov/Commissioner/news/pressrels/2009_PressReleases/BEP%20and%20Teacher%20Assignment%20Release.102309.pdf
 

DFER To New York: Now That's What A Race Looks Like!

Democratic Reform Group Lauds Hoyt's Race To The Top Plan for NY 
Legislation Would Position Empire State to Receive Federal Education Dollars at Critical Time 

In response to President Obama's incentive to improve state education laws, NYS Assemblyman Sam Hoyt has introduced legislation to lift the cap on the number of charter schools allowed in New York, along with a host of other crucial game-changing reforms for K-12 education.  The federal "Race to the Top" contest for nearly $5 billion in education stimulus has inspired pro-reform legislation around the country and this new law, if enacted, could make New York eligible for funding. Lifting charter caps around the state is a key requirement for receiving Race to the Top disbursements from the federal Department of Education.

"Assemblyman Hoyt has answered President Obama's call to bring serious change to public education," said Joe Williams, DFER's executive director. "The legislation Hoyt has proposed in the NYS legislature will start to address the major shortcomings in state laws that have prevented the forward movement of education reform in the state." U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan has leveraged $100 billion in federal stimulus funding for education, and his $5 billion Race to the Top initiative is specifically targeted at ending the status quo in education policy

The effort has been aimed at stopping the politics-as-usual gamesmanship that has stagnated American public education for decades.  The Administration has reserved a tiny fraction of federal education spending as a venture capital fund to invest only in those states that are ready to undertake meaningful, lasting and systemic change.  Many states have responded to the President's call.  If Assemblyman Hoyt is successful, New York will join Illinois, Colorado, Tennessee, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Louisiana and Indiana as states that have made substantive changes to qualify for Race to the Top funding.

Statement on Passing of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass)

Democrats for Education Reform executive director Joe Williams released the following statement today on the passing of Sen. Ted Kennedy, chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee:

"No one has fought harder than Ted Kennedy to return the Democratic Party to its rightful place as a champion of children, first and foremost, in America's public education systems. We hope that the political courage he has shown in challenging a failing status quo that shortchanges our nation's poor and minority children will serve as a shining example to others who will, in the coming months and years, follow in his footsteps."

Press Release: Real Democrats Support Charter Schools

In response to Education Secretary Arne Duncan's announcement that grants from the $4.35 billion "Race to the Top" fund will be reliant on the effectiveness of state's public charter school policies, Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) championed the plan and the President's willingness to make good on the promises he made while campaigning. Central to DFER's mission is convincing Democrats that supporting public charter schools is good public policy.

"The word coming out of the Department of Education today is that the administration has the chops for being real change agents. Secretary Duncan is poised to withhold Race to the Top funds from states that don't have effective charter school laws. The irony is that so many of the state legislatures dragging their feet are controlled by Democrats. Its time for Democrats to wise up and realize that supporting public charter schools is the right thing to do."

When Democrats, who have historically been proud supporters of public education, are the ones standing between the families we claim to represent and the public school options for which they clamor, we have to re-examine our priorities when it comes to schools.

"When Democrats, who have historically been proud supporters of public education, are the ones standing between the families we claim to represent and the public school options for which they clamor, we have to re-examine our priorities when it comes to schools."

"There is no shortage of evidence, in places like California, New York, Boston, and elsewhere, public charter schools have shown they aren't killing public education. In fact, public charter schools are leading the charge to save public education and delivering results. Successful school models like KIPP, Achievement First, Green Dot, Aspire, and others provide proof points nationwide for what is possible in our schools. These public charter schools are offering parents the kinds of schools they want for their children and kids the education they deserve. President Obama and Secretary Duncan get it. It's time for the rest of our party to figure it out."