by Kathleen Haughney
The News Service of Florida
Florida is once again a finalist for the Race to the Top grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Education, after falling short earlier this year in its quest to bring more than $1 billion in federal education dollars to the state.
The U.S. Department of Education named Florida as one of 19 finalists in the competitive grant program that tasks schools with finding innovative ways to improve public education.
Florida was considered a likely winner for the first round of competition, but finished fourth behind Delaware, Tennessee and Georgia after it failed to get local support from teacher unions and some school administrators who were uncomfortable with plans that linked teacher pay to student test scores.
The state is now competing for a slightly smaller pot of money, $700 million, for its schools. After losing out this past spring, a work group revamped the state’s application for the program in an effort to get the unions on board.
“Florida has worked diligently to bring together diverse support from superintendents, school board members, teachers and teacher associations for our Race to the Top application,” Gov. Charlie Crist said in a statement Tuesday. “I am confident our team will clearly communicate why Florida’s past and present success will ensure bold education reforms that are critical to Florida’s future.”
There’s no certainty that the state’s strong finish in round one is an indicator of a first or second place finish in this round of competition. Florida’s second round application has gotten some attention for side agreements where if unions object, districts might not impose changes to teacher pay and evaluations, something that some analysts said flew directly in the face of what Race to the Top was trying to accomplish.
U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan has said that states should not sacrifice goals to get the unions on board, but has also said that Delaware and Tennessee received money in the first round because of widespread support for their agendas.
Patricia Levesque, executive director of the Foundation for Florida’s Future, called the announcement recognition of the state’s “commitment to bold reforms that are transforming education,” while Andy Ford, president of the Florida Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, said the announcement was due to the “cooperation and collaboration” of the working group that revamped the state’s application for the award.
Crist, Ford, Education Commissioner Eric Smith, public schools Chancellor Frances Haithcock and Miami-Dade County Superintendent Alberto Carvalho will travel to Washington, D.C., in August to present the state’s plan to the department.