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Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Checking in on Race to Top Landscape - Politics K-12 - Education Week

Checking in on Race to Top Landscape - Politics K-12 - Education Week

Checking in on Race to Top Landscape

The application deadline for the second round of Race to the Top isn't until June 1, but we've got one good gauge of which states may be applying, and which may be sitting the competition out.
Today, in Minneapolis, the U.S. Department of Education is holding an all-day technical assistance seminar for potential round two applicants. (People can also participate via conference call.)
Forty-two states plus D.C. are attending, or tuning in remotely. The states that, for whatever reason, are not participating, are: Alaska, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, Texas, Vermont, and Wyoming.
The second round of competition seems to be causing more turmoil within states than the first round did. No doubt, as states try to up the stakes so they can better compete, there's bound to be more resistance from teachers' unions and local districts for bold reforms. This is something I'll probably explore further as I continue to monitor the Race to the Top landscape.
In the meantime, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is trying some round-two recruiting of his own. On