News
South Carolina among 15 finalists for $300 million in fed funds
March 5, 2010
South Carolina in finals in Race to the Top grant competition
South Carolina among 15 finalists for $300 million in fed funds
By Ron Barnett • Staff writer •
In the Race to the Top, a national competition for
millions in federal dollars for education, South
Carolina just outran 25 states and is heading toward
the finish line with hopes of winning a $300 million
prize.
The Palmetto State has been named one of 15 states
plus the District of Columbia that are finalists for a
piece of $4 billion in stimulus money the Obama
administration is holding out as a carrot to
encourage effective education reform.
Some states didn't get their applications in on time
for the first grants, which will be awarded next
month.
“Some people in South Carolina might be surprised
that we're a finalist,” said state Superintendent of
Education Jim Rex. “But nationally, our state is
viewed as being on the cutting edge of making the
changes that will make schools stronger.
“In a head-to-head competition with 41 other states,
these independent judges found that South Carolina
has the potential to be a school improvement leader
in the 21st Century,” he said. “It's ironic that at the
same time, our General Assembly is discussing
extraordinary budget cuts that could take us back to
the 20th Century.”
The House Ways and Means Committee is preparing
a budget that would slash $104 million from K-12
education.
The stimulus money, if South Carolina wins it,
couldn't be used for such things as keeping school
buses running, but it could ease the crunch on
programs that are already in operation and free up
money for other needs.
“I think that recognizes that we have the potential to
do great things in education,” said Nancy Kennedy,
president of the Southwest Council of Greenville
County's District 1 PTA and mother of two students
at the Charles Townes Gifted Center.
But she said, “I hope that our legislators don't count
this money before we get it.”
South Carolina was perceived by many as a long
shot in the competition, Rex said. The Gates
Foundation had funded some states to help with
their application, but not South Carolina, he said.
“But we believed that we should be a frontrunner
based on what we were already doing in the state,
let alone what we plan to do,” he said.
The application documented the programs used to
achieve progress in test scores and teacher
standards, among other things.
“This competition wasn't based on which states had
the highest test scores,” said Rex, a Democrat who
is running for governor. “This was based on
improvement. They're placing bets on states they
think can help all of us make this country more
competitive.”
Half of the money would go to school districts,
which would be assigned projects based on each
district's strength, state Deputy Superintendent Betsy
Carpentier said.
Other states named finalists are: Colorado,
Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, North
Advertisement Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and
Tennessee.
