State Supt. comments on Race to the Top Senate approval

From State Supt. desk: 

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell  Wednesday released the following statement after the California State Senate passed SBX5 1 which will help California compete for $4.35 billion in Race to the Top funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009:

            "Race to the Top presents California with an unprecedented opportunity to boldly reform our public education system so that we can improve student academic success and further our efforts to close the achievement gap.

"I congratulate the California State Senate for its passage of SBX5 1, and I applaud Governor Schwarzenegger for his leadership and partnership as we advocate for education reforms that will benefit California students and strengthen California's competitiveness for Race to the Top funds.

"While last night's Senate approval of this bill is a major step forward, we should not lose sight of the hard work that remains ahead of us to win the Race to the Top. I look forward to working with the California State Assembly to gain approval of this measure. I also remain committed to working closely with the Governor, the Legislature, the State Board of Education, and our education community to develop an innovative and effective Race to the Top application."

SBX5 1 is a bipartisan measure that deletes the prohibition of using data to evaluate teachers and administrators and implements other strategies to help low- performing schools. 

ARRA was signed into law in February by the President. The entire ARRA spending and tax package to benefit the nation's schools includes more than $100 billion for elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education. California already is eligible for $7 billion in ARRA funding to benefit prekindergarten through grade twelve public education in the state. Race to the Top is a competitive grant program of ARRA that will provide the largest amount of money the federal government has ever offered specifically geared toward education reform. The funding is specifically intended for selected states to use in order to make systemic changes at the state level that would improve teaching and learning statewide. For more information on Race to the Top and ARRA, please visit http://www.cde.ca.gov/ar/er/.