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The Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

Race to the Top: Summary of Proposed Requirements

Grant requirements

Race to the Top is a $4.3 billion federal grant program for states intended to reward states for setting the conditions for education reform and to catalyze the next stage of reform. The federal government has not yet set the final deadline for the grant application, nor has it issued guidelines on how many states might receive awards. Our expectation is that approximately 10 to 15 states will receive awards and that applications will be due around January 1, 2010.

Funding priorities

State proposals must address four key education reform "assurance" areas: standards and assessments, data systems to support instruction, great teachers and leaders, and turning around struggling schools. Applicants will also receive points for addressing policy issues related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The proposed regulations require that 50 percent of any funding the state receives from the grant be distributed to districts through the Title I formula, with the funding to be used to support the grant priorities.

Eligibility requirements

In order to be eligible to apply, a state must demonstrate that:

  1. Its application for funding under Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (SFSF) has been approved. We expect to have our SFSF application approved well before the RTTT grant deadline.
  2. It does not have any legal, statutory, or regulatory barriers to linking data on student achievement or student growth to teachers and principals for the purpose of teacher and principal evaluation. Massachusetts meets this requirement.

Selection criteria

Applications will be rated on 19 criteria, all of which must be addressed in the proposal.

Standards and Assessments

  1. Developing and adopting common standards
  2. Developing and implementing common, high-quality assessments
  3. upporting transition to enhanced standards and high-quality assessments

Data Systems to Support Instruction

  1. Fully implementing a statewide longitudinal data system
  2. Accessing and using state data
  3. Using data to improve instruction

Great Teachers and Leaders

  1. Providing alternative pathways for aspiring teachers and principals
  2. Differentiating teacher and principal effectiveness based on performance
  3. Ensuring equitable distribution of effective teachers and principals
  4. Reporting the effectiveness of teacher and principal preparation programs
  5. Providing effective support to teachers and principals

Turning Around Struggling Schools

  1. Intervening in the lowest performing schools and districts
  2. Increasing the supply of high-quality charter schools
  3. Turning around struggling schools

Overall Criteria

  1. Demonstrating significant progress
  2. Making education funding a priority
  3. Enlisting statewide support and commitment
  4. Raising achievement and closing gaps
  5. Building strong statewide capacity to implement, scale, and sustain proposed plans

Contact information

For more information about Massachusetts' priorities for Race to the Top, please contact the following people: