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Passing Notes
A Newsletter from MBAE March 2010 |
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The wait is over but the news is disappointing. Massachusetts has not been named a winner in the first round of the Race to the Top. Congratulations to Delaware and Tennessee for their success! Congratulations also to those in Massachusetts who worked hard on the application and guided the state to its selection as one of 16 finalists!
MBAE looks forward to the second round, with applications due in June, and is committed to doing all we can to make the most of this unprecedented opportunity to improve education in our state and to maintain our position as a leader in the nation!
In This Issue
- Massachusetts Passed Over in Round 1 - Race to the Top Awards Announced
- Federal Policy Impact - Stimulus Money and Jobs
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| Race to the Top Winners are Delaware and Tennessee |
| Massachusetts Does Not Get Award in Round 1! |
 Although U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has not yet made it official, news reports have confirmed that only two states have been awarded competitive federal grants of $100 million for Delaware and $500 million for Tennessee in Round 1 of the Race to the Top!
The news that Massachusetts has not been selected as winner is a call to action for greater urgency and a more innovative and aggressive plan to raise student achievement in the Commonwealth. The results make it clear that the Commonwealth's Race to the Top application in the second round must reach the level of transformative change necessary to meet our state's most critical challenge of preparing all students for success in college, career and citizenship. MBAE remains committed to supporting state education officials as they develop a second application that will not only secure the $287 million at stake, but more importantly, seize this unprecedented opportunity to improve our schools and provide all children the education they need and deserve.
Secretary Duncan has described the "integrity and transparency" of the selection process in his blog, and you can find copies of every application submitted by 40 states and the District of Columbia here. Comments from the independent reviewers and videos of the presentations made by the 16 finalists will also be available at that site after the official announcement.
As the state regroups to draft its Round 2 application, there are plenty of pundits providing analysis and critiques of our original proposal. Massachusetts was one of 5 states receiving the lowest rank - a red light - on its teachers and leaders section from the National Council on Teacher Quality. The Institute for a Competitive Workforce provided a comparative chart of district participation in each finalist state and an analysis of "Lessons Learned" from finalist states.
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| Federal Policy Impact - Two Reports on Education and Jobs |
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The Race to the Top is not the only federal policy and economic stimulus funding activity going on right now. Two recent reports present information regarding the impact of federal spending and policy. |
 Education Jobs Saved by ARRA
Total K-12 education jobs are declining, according to a new analysis by the Center on Reinventing Public Education, but Federal stimulus dollars appear to have played a role in saving over 342,000 jobs, or 5.5% of total teaching jobs nationally. Funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) are estimated to have saved over 3,000 jobs in Massachusetts public schools facing devastating budget deficits.
This analysis of current teaching jobs data available from 21 states cites implications of the reduction in teaching jobs as including an aging workforce, increasing imbalances in teacher pension funding plans, and a weakening of the regenerating effects of new, younger people entering the teaching profession.
Linking Education and Workforce Outcomes
 The American Association of Community Colleges has issued a policy brief examining the assumptions in federal education policy regarding linkages between education and workforce outcomes, and the data needed to document those outcomes. The brief concludes that before the workforce outcomes of educational pursuits can be comprehensively analyzed, federal and state governments need to establish stronger postsecondary longitudinal data systems, provide colleges with better access to data, and start collecting comprehensive individual-level employment data. These steps are necessary to create data systems that inform students, parents, employers, and the community while improving educational practice, |
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| MBAE Thanks Our Supporters |
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MBAE's work is made possible by the financial support of generous individuals and -
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MBAE is committed to a high quality public education system that will prepare all students to engage successfully in a global economy and society. We bring together business and education leaders to promote education policies and practices based on measurable standards of achievement, accountability for performance, and equitable educational opportunities for all students. | | |
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