Loss of 'Race to the top' funding to hurd

Despite controversial changes to its education laws, California was not chosen as a finalist in the federal "Race to the Top" grant competition, which could have brought $700 million to the cash-strapped state.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, 15 states and Washington, D.C., were selected as finalists for the first round of a contest in which states competed for a share of $4 billion in school improvement funds. First-round finalists include New York, Pennsylvania and Georgia.

An undetermined number of winners will be announced April 1 and another round of grants will be awarded later this year. In that second round, school districts will be able to compete for money on their own, and Los Angeles Unified plans to do so.