A Helping Hand?

PRESS RELEASE
Secretary Spellings Announces $42 Million for 16 Grants to Reward Effective Teaching and Leadership
Teacher Incentive Fund for Teachers, Principals, Seeks to Improve Student Achievement in High-Poverty Schools

FOR RELEASE: November 3, 2006

Contact: Stephanie Babyak or Jane Glickman (202) 401-1576

Editor's Note: A list of the grant recipients and award amounts is attached.

U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today announced the award of $42 million for 16 grants that will reward educators who take on tough jobs and show results in high-need schools. The grants will be used to provide financial incentives to teachers and principals who improve student achievement in high-poverty schools and to recruit effective teachers to those schools, particularly for hard-to-staff subjects like math and science. The grants are projected to be funded for five years for a total of some $240.6 million.

"Nothing helps a child learn as much as a great teacher-and research shows that rewarding teachers for results can improve student performance. Great teachers who work in schools where they are badly needed deserve more than our thanks. I am pleased to announce these Teacher Incentive Fund grants, which will encourage and reward more experienced teachers for working at high-poverty schools where they can make a real difference in raising student achievement," Spellings said.

Funded for the first time in 2006, the Teacher Incentive Fund program is President Bush's initiative to develop and implement performance-based teacher and principal compensation systems in high-need, disadvantaged schools, where at least 30 percent of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The goals of the program are to improve student achievement by increasing the effectiveness of principals and teachers, and, at the same time, increase the number of effective teachers for minority and disadvantaged students. Another $43.1 million is expected to be awarded in spring 2007. For more information about the Teacher Incentive Fund visit http://www.ed.gov/programs/teacherincentive/faq.html.

Grant Recipients	2006 Award	Projected 5 Year Grant
Northern New Mexico Network	$571,074	$7,647,796
New Leaders, Inc. (DC Public Schools)	$3,036,837	$14,118,543
Chicago Public Schools (IL)	$131,273	$27,467,966
Denver School District (CO)	$5,747,869	$22,674,393
New Leaders, Inc. (Memphis, TN City Schools)	$3,109,944	$13,836,434
Mare Island Technical Academy (CA)	$417,428	$1,626,392
Houston Independent School District (TX)	$3,991,330	$11,781,323
Guilford County Schools (NC)	$1,790,060	$8,000,005
New Leaders, Inc. (Nat'l network of charter schools)	$4,921,435	$20,752,420
Chugach School District (AK)	$1,278,773	$5,191,449
South Carolina Dept. of Education	$4,750,305	$33,959,740
Dallas Independent School District (TX)	$126,139	$22,385,899
School District of Philadelphia	$1,443,017	$20,500,215
Ohio Department of Education	$5,510,860	$20,223,270
Eagle County School District (CO)	$1,562,129	$6,779,204
Weld County School District (CO)	$937,040	$3,670,133
Total: 16 Awards	$42,078,259	$240,615,182

Academic Competitiveness and National SMART (Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent) Grants

To meet the growing need for improved math and science instruction, on Feb. 8, 2006 President Bush signed into law two new student grant programs--the Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG) and National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent (National SMART Grant) Programs.

$790 million is set aside for the 2006-07 academic year for these grants, which were created by the Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005. The grants will encourage students to take more challenging courses in high school--making success in college more likely, according to research--and to pursue college majors in high demand in the global economy, such as science, mathematics, technology, engineering and critical foreign languages.

Academic Competitiveness Grants will be available to students for their first and second academic years of college. National SMART Grants will be available to students for their third and fourth academic years of college.

• Academic Competitiveness Grant Program and National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant Program - Final regulations (November 1, 2006)

• Dear Colleague Letter from Acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education, James F. Manning, providing guidance to institutions concerning implementation of the "academic year" definition within the ACG and National SMART Grant programs for the 2006-07 and 2007-08 award years (October 20, 2006)

• Academic Competitiveness Grant Program and National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant Program - Interim final regulations; request for comments (July 3, 2006)

• Academic Competitiveness Grants Recognized State Rigorous Secondary School Programs of Study (June 30, 2006)

• Information for Students on ACG and National SMART Grants (June 29, 2006)

• Press Release - Secretary Spellings Announces July 1 Availability of $790 Million in New Grants for Higher Education (June 21, 2006)

• Press Release - U.S. Department of Education Announces Student Eligibility Options for New Academic Grants (May 2, 2006)

• Dear Colleague Letter from Secretary Spellings describing plans for implementation (May 2, 2006)

• Fact Sheet on Student Eligibility Options (May 2006)

• Dear Colleague Letter from the Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education and the Chief Operating Officer, Federal Student Aid on ACG and National SMART Grant Programs (April 5, 2006)
  - Attachment (PDF)

• Dear Colleague Letter from the Office of Postsecondary Education and the Chief Operating Officer, Federal Student Aid providing the list of academic majors eligible for the National SMART Grants for the 2006-07 award year (May 2, 2006)
  - Attachment (PDF)

• American Competitiveness Initiative - President Bush's 2006 education agenda, the American Competitiveness Initiative, aims to strengthen innovation and education in the U.S. by improving math and science education, foreign language studies, and high schools