State trying again for $250m US education grant - The Boston Globe

State trying again for $250m US education grant - The Boston Globe

State trying again for $250m US education grant

Standards cited as crucial issue

By James Vaznis

Globe Staff / May 31, 2010

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Massachusetts is taking another shot at getting millions of federal dollars to create new programs and overhaul failing schools.

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What is Race to the Top?
A $4.35 billion fund the Obama administration is allocating to states deemed to be undertaking ambitious overhaul plans for K-12 schools and expansion of charter schools. Delaware and Tennessee won the first and second grants, respectively, in March. Massachusetts ranked 13th out of 16 finalists, behind Georgia, Kentucky, and Louisiana, but ahead of Colorado, New York, and Washington, D.C.

A revised application for a $250 million federal education grant was filed Saturday and education secretary Paul Reville said he is confident about the state’s chances for getting a grant.

But it is unclear whether the changes will please the Obama administration, whose rejection of the original application sent shock waves through the state.

The new proposal, which the US Department of Education should receive by tomorrow’s deadline, attempts to remedy shortcomings in the state’s original application for the Race to the Top competition.

A federal review panel at that time raised doubts about the state’s commitment to two key priorities of the administration: Adopting national academic standards and tying teacher evaluations to student test scores.

Working through both issues proved contentious at times. While Massachusetts has taken steps to firm up those areas in its application, state education leaders