N.Y. a finalist for $700M in Race to the Top school funds

Local News

July 27, 2010

By Joe Olenick Lockport Union-Sun & Journal The Lockport Union-Sun %26 Journal Tue Jul 27, 2010, 09:23 PM EDT

— New York is one step closer to capitalizing on a second chance to win $700 million in education funding from the federal Race to the Top competition.

The state is one of 19 finalists — 18 states and the District of Columbia — for the federal stimulus-funded program. This is the second round for the Race to the Top funding, which will award $3.5 billion in grants to the winners with the best education reform plan. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan made the announcement Tuesday.

Wilson Superintendent Michael Wendt said New York becoming a finalist was good news. Wilson, like so many other school districts in the state, had to make some major cuts in their budgets for the 2010-11 school year.

“It’s revenue for schools, which is needed,” he said. “I applaud them for trying again, and let’s keep our fingers crossed.”

The finalists will travel to Washington, D.C., during the week of Aug. 9 to formally present their plans. After the presentation and a question-and-answer session, the finalists will receive a score. Winners will be announced in September.

The other 18 finalists are Arizona, California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and South Carolina. There were 35 states and Washington, D.C., that submitted applications for this round of the Race to the Top.

Gov. David Paterson released a statement expressing his pleasure that New York was among the 19 finalists. Paterson said New York can’t afford to let the money slip away.

“I am proud to see that New York has been recognized for moving forward with our much-needed improvements,” Paterson said.

New York’s application included raising the state’s charter school cap by increasing the number to 460 charter schools, up from 200. The state is also planning to use student test scores to evaluate teachers and creating a data system that tracks individual student performance.

“These were all areas that the U.S. Department of Education identified as weaknesses in our first application, which failed in large part because the Legislature initially refused to pass these vital reforms,” Paterson said. “I am confident that with these reforms, New York’s application in this second round will be successful and that we will win the necessary funds to help ensure our children have access to quality education.”

For the first round of the Race to the Top competition, New York was one of the 16 finalists. However the state finished 15th overall and did not receive any money. Only Delaware and Tennessee won money during the first round in March.

Last month, Paterson vetoed the $419 million in education funding state lawmakers had put back into the budget, which is now almost four months late. In his proposed budget presented in January, Paterson had cut about $1.1 billion from education in an effort to close a $9.2 billion deficit.

Contact reporter Joe Olenick at 439-9222, ext. 6241.

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