Race to the Top

10 Stories

Bobby Jindal Sues White House Over Common Core

Says education standards amount to nationalizing education

(Newser) - Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is suing the Obama administration over Common Core education standards, arguing that they represent a federal effort to wrest control over education from the states, the AP reports. According to the suit filed today, the White House has "effectively force[d] states down a path toward...

NJ Fails Math, Loses Millions in School Funding

Christie office commits costly error on 'Race to the Top' application

(Newser) - New Jersey lost out on hundreds of millions of dollars in federal education funding because of a simple mistake in its application, the Newark Star-Ledger reports. A staffer in Gov. Chris Christie's office filled out a field for budget data that called for a comparison of the 2008 and 2009...

DC Schools to Fire Hundreds of Teachers

Poor performance, No Child Left Behind lead to 241 dismissals

(Newser) - The Washington, DC, schools are giving hundreds of teachers the ax because of their low scores in the district’s tough new evaluation system. Chancellor Michelle Rhee says 241 teachers are being fired for poor performance, the Washington Post reports. Another 737 were rated “minimally effective,” meaning they...

Obama Puts Kid to Sleep at Commencement
 Obama Puts Kid to Sleep 
 at Commencement 
POMP AND NAPPYTIME
Jun 8, 2010 6:50 AM CDT

Obama Puts Kid to Sleep at Commencement

Kalamazoo Central student dozes through reward for winning video

(Newser) - Barack Obama yesterday presented Kalamazoo Central High School's class of 2010 with their reward for winning his "Race to the Top" video competition: a commencement address from him. Thousands of students submitted inspiring videos about their schools; you can see Kalamazoo's over at the Huffington Post . Or cut to...

White House Dangles Obama Commencement Speech

Public school voted tops will land president

(Newser) - If your high school commencement speech was some guy from the Chamber of Commerce, the White House has a less nap-inducing alternative: The public school voted most dedicated to prepping its kids for college and career will get a graduation address from one Barack Obama. Six finalist schools are on...

Del., Tenn. Only States to Qualify for Education Stimulus Prize

Union support helps 'Race to Top' winners

(Newser) - With $4 billion in stimulus funds up for grabs in an initiative to improve US schools, only two states of the 41 that applied scored high enough to get a piece. Delaware and Tennessee will each get $600 million, from the “Race to the Top” program, the Department of...

'No Child Left Behind' Overhaul in the Works

2014 deadline for bringing all students to proficiency to be ditched

(Newser) - The Obama administration is planning a sweeping overhaul of the Child Left Behind law to create a new model for how schools are judged to be succeeding or failing. The White House plans to change parts of the law educators have found most objectionable and award more federal money based...

Teachers' Unions Strangling School Reform
 Teachers' Unions 
 Strangling School Reform 
JOE KLEIN
Jan 28, 2010 12:28 PM CST

Teachers' Unions Strangling School Reform

Obama must fight for accountability and neuter 'reactionary' lobbyists

(Newser) - New York could really use $700 million in federal Race to the Top education funding, Joe Klein writes, but it won’t get it thanks to intractable teachers’ unions. The federal funds require school choice and teacher accountability, so the powerful union lobby stymied it in the state legislature. The...

President Has Delivered Real Change in Education
 President Has Delivered
 Real Change in Education
DAVID BROOKS
Oct 23, 2009 5:35 AM CDT

President Has Delivered Real Change in Education

Race to the Top program has sparked a 'quiet revolution' in education

(Newser) - President Obama's huge success in education reform has been overlooked amid all the carping about his failure to deliver as much change as expected, writes David Brooks. The $4.3 billion Race to the Top fund Obama and Arne Duncan established has helped accelerate real reform in education and has...

Prez to Unveil $4B Education Boost Today

Rewards states that push charter schools, teacher performance

(Newser) - President Obama will offer struggling states a carrot and a stick today, as he unveils draft guidelines for a new $4.35 billion education initiative designed to push charter schools, linking teacher pay to performance, and adopting common academic standards. The Race for the Top program, part of the stimulus...

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