Pass / Fail : New 'Race to the Top' details officially released; money will go directly to schools | 89.3 KPCC

Pass / Fail : New 'Race to the Top' details officially released; money will go directly to schools | 89.3 KPCC:

New 'Race to the Top' details officially released; money will go directly to schools

by By Tami Abdollah

US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan speaks to the press at the White House in Washington, DC, April 20, 2012. The US Department of Education released the application requirements of the 2012 Race to the Top competition, which will allow districts to apply directly to the federal government for funds rather than via their states. Credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images
The U.S. Department of Education released details of the 2012 Race to the Top competition today for nearly $400 million in federal dollars that will, for the first time, go directly to school districts rather than their states.
The competition was launched in 2009 and has been lauded by federal education officials as inspiring nationwide education reform and working to improve "student achievement and educator effectiveness."
"We want to help schools become engines of innovation through personalized learning so that every child in