Dallas ISD has not been granted the nearly $30 million it sought in federal Race to the Top funds, jeopardizing the district’s plans for improvement in some of its poorer neighborhoods, the U.S. Department of Education announced this afternoon.
District officials had planned to use the money for more comprehensive teacher and principal evaluation systems, better classroom technology, and improved recruitment and retention of teachers. Most of these goals would’ve been applied to the district’s lesser-performing schools, mostly in south and west Dallas.
The Department of Education announced 16 winners today: Carson City, Nev., Guilford County, N.C., New Haven Unified, Calif., Charleston County, S.C.; Galt Joint Union Elementary District, Calif., Green River Regional Education Cooperative, Ky.; Iredell-Statesville, N.C.; Lindsay Unified, Calif.; Metropolitan School District of Warren Township in Indianapolis; Middletown City, N.Y.; Puget Sound Education Service District, Wash.; St. Vrain Valley, Colo.; and Miami-Dade, Fla.
IDEA public schools and the Harmony Science Academy consortia in Texas also took home cash. There were 61 finalists, including other major cities that were left out: New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Boston.
