Carol’s Summary:
               The Federal Government’s Race to the Top competition, which grants funding for education reform, is going into its second phase after Tuesday night’s application deadline. Thirty-five states and the District of Columbia applied for the second round of the competition, where states are rewarded grants for their efforts to reform the education system.
States will win grants based on their efforts towards amending curriculum, improving low-performing and underprivileged schools, as well as for the methods by which they employ and train teachers. There is a total of $3.4 billion dollars to be presented to the states that demonstrate the most efforts towards changing their schools.
In the first round, forty states applied for funds, with Delaware and Tennessee winning a combined $600 million. Three states have not re-applied, while states like Alaska and Texas did not apply for funds in either round of the competition. The finalists will be named around July 26, and by the end of September the winners will be decided. It is predicted that between 10-15 states will receive Race to the Top grants.
Many schools use LifeBound books in their classrooms to apply lessons to real-life situations, thus making learning more purposeful and suitable to students’ needs. Books such as Making the Most out of High School offer curriculum that is unique and allows teachers, students and parents to teach and learn with more hands-on strategies. The methods that LifeBound teaches are carefully researched and tested to ensure academic success.
While many schools are cutting budgets right and left, we are working to meet districts in creative ways to bring the best programs possible to students and teachers. For more information about Lifebound’s books and curriculum, visit www.lifebound.com or e-mail contact@lifebound.com.
Article:
Wall Street Journal
Thirty-Five States, D.C. Vie for Education Funding
Thirty-five states and the District of Columbia applied for the second phase of the Race to the Top federal education competition as the application deadline passed Tuesday night.
The states are hoping to win a piece of the $3.4 billion available under President Barack Obama’s signature education initiative.
Race to the Top aims to spur innovation by rewarding states that promote charter schools, tie teacher pay to student achievement and intervene in low-performing schools.
