Budget woes threaten gains made by education stimulus funds
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) pumped some $100 million into the nation's education system. The funds were used for everything from shoring up budget shortfalls to preventing teacher layoffs to helping implement education reforms.
But, according to a new report by the Center for Education Policy, the gains made by the stimulus funds could be seriously impaired by state budgetary problems since the influx of money the country's education system gained by the Recovery Act was a one-time deal.
“States have tried to put major reform efforts on a fast track, but it is getting difficult for many of them to maintain momentum,” said Jack Jennings, the Center for Education Policy’s president and chief executive officer. “While their commitment remains strong, budgets are stressed and states must prioritize, especially with federal stimulus funds drying up and most states predicting reduced or flat funding in the coming fiscal year.”
The report, More to Do, But Less Capacity To Do It: States’ Progress in Implementing the Recovery Act Education Reforms, was born out of the results of anonymous surveys filled out by school districts in 42 states and the District of Columbia. The purpose of the survey was to determine the impact of the Recovery Act's Race To The Top initiative and how states have, and plan on, implementing reforms that resulted from the ARRA.
When it comes to the Race To The Top applicants and winners, 16 of the 32 states that did not get the grant reported that they still plan on implementing the education reform plan outlined in their application; albeit at a slower rate than the award recipient states. The 11 winning states intend on implementing their reform plans too, as expected. Additionally, 12 of the 32 non-winning states are looking into more ways to reform education in their school districts.
“It is good to have reform objectives and to focus federal and state attention on those, but states and local school districts must have the capacity and means to carry out those goals,” Jennings said. “Only a handful of states believe they have the expertise, staffing levels, and funding to carry out key stimulus activities. Creating that capacity may be states’ biggest challenge in the coming years.”
In order to receive funds from the stimulus act, according to a press release, school districts were asked to focus on four target reform areas: "developing and implementing rigorous standards and quality assessments; establishing data systems that track students through their school careers; improving teacher effectiveness and equitable distribution of qualified teachers; and providing support to turn around the lowest-performing schools."
