RILEY ANNOUNCES $12 MILLION TO TEXAS FOR COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL REFORM PROGRAMS

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Archived: RILEY ANNOUNCES $12 MILLION TO TEXAS FOR COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL REFORM PROGRAMS A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

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September 2, 1998

Contact: David Thomas (202) 401-1576

RILEY ANNOUNCES $12 MILLION TO TEXAS FOR COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL REFORM PROGRAMS

 Texas has received $12 million in a new federal education grant to help raise student achievement under comprehensive, research-driven approaches that strengthen entire schools and make curricula more rigorous, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley announced today.

Additional states have applied and will be funded this fall; all states have until June 30, 1999 to seek funding. A total of 19 states have shared in $67 million awarded this summer. Total funding for the program is $145 million.

"These grants will both start and speed up needed schoolwide change in virtually all aspects of school operations in participating schools," Riley said. "They will expand both the quality and scope of reform efforts that enable all children, particularly at-risk youth, to meet challenging academic standards -- and help turn around low-performing schools."

The comprehensive reform program is designed to raise standards and build on other state and local efforts, through Title I and other reform programs. Under Title I, states must set measurable student performance goals and tie them to state content and performance standards. The comprehensive school reform grants will support local schools in achieving their goals and in helping students meet state standards.

Riley noted that the demonstration program will help point the way toward more effective use of federal funds for Title I "schoolwide programs" in more than 25,000 high-poverty schools that have a "schoolwide" option for use of Title I funds. States are also encouraged to use comprehensive school reform funds to help improve schools that have been identified as in need of improvement because of low student achievement.

Texas will use about $10 million to make up to 200 awards to support reform efforts in schools eligible for the federal Title I program. About $2 million will be used to make 37 additional awards to schools that need to substantially improve student achievement.

These awards, to be distributed as Improving Teaching and Learning grants, will support school improvement strategies in districts and schools across Texas, with priority to schools identified as low-performing under the state accountability system, and schools with low passing rates on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) reading tests. Texas plans to make grants to local school systems in February 1999.

School districts apply to the state on behalf of schools, groups of schools or charter schools, and describe the comprehensive program they will use and the evidence that it will improve student achievement. In funding schools, states may consider factors such as high dropout rates and are encouraged to support both urban and rural school districts throughout the state. Educators, parents, and members of the business community will be involved in the review and selection of applications for funding in Texas.

Schools must integrate curriculum and instruction; student assessment; professional development; parent involvement and school management -- and bring in help from outside partners with experience in school reform.

While policy makers can select any comprehensive reform program with a successful and rigorous track record, including locally developed approaches, 17 models were specifically included in the legislation as examples. The models range from Success for All, a pre-K-6 program developed by Johns Hopkins University that emphasizes early reading, family involvement and cooperative learning, to the Modern Red Schoolhouse, a K-12 program developed by the Hudson Institute that offers a rigorous curriculum and high standards, emphasizes character, utilizes technology and individualizes student learning plans.

Many schools in Texas already are involved in comprehensive school reform. For example, 70 percent of San Antonio's schools have committed to implementing comprehensive school reform models, with the remaining schools expected to follow. Only two schools in the district were identified as low-performing by the state this year, down from 40 schools just two years ago.

Maverick Elementary School in San Antonio is using the Modern Red Schoolhouse. The Nathaniel Hawthorne Elementary School, one of the district's high-poverty schools with a large Hispanic population, is using Core Knowledge, an approach to curriculum developed by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., that stresses a rigorous set of concepts, skills, and knowledge by grade level. Sam Houston High School is implementing Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound, in which students produce high-quality work based on in-depth learning "expeditions," or investigations of themes or topics, while Davis Middle School is implementing Co-NECT, which aims to raise student achievement in core subject areas with a heavy emphasis on technology.