A new analysis released today by the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN), reveals that Connecticut left 120 blanks in its Round 1 Race to the Top application, underscoring the need for lawmakers to pass reforms to improve the state’s standing before Round 2.
“It’s as if Connecticut were a high school student applying to college with a transcript full of incompletes,” said Alex Johnston, ConnCAN Chief Executive Officer. “This analysis is a wake-up call for Connecticut lawmakers. We have three months left in the legislative session to pass real education reforms to make our state competitive in the Race to the Top and close our worst-in-the-nation achievement gap.”
In January, Connecticut applied for the first round of the Race to the Top, the federal government’s highly coveted $4 billion competition to reward states that aggressively reform their public schools.
The Race to the Top application asks states to set targets to explain how they would meet specific reform goals. But, as ConnCAN’s analysis reveals, where other states provided specific, measurable goals in 24 categories over five years resulting in 120 blanks, Connecticut just left these answers incomplete. ConnCAN’s analysis stacks Connecticut’s application against three states—Colorado, Delaware and Florida—in three reform areas within the Race to the Top to provide a snapshot of the Connecticut application’s shortcomings.
Round 2 of the Race to the Top is due June 1. ConnCAN’s campaign, “Our Race to the Top,” is calling for four reforms to help Connecticut win the Race to the Top: measuring effectiveness, superstar principals, world-class standards and money follows the child.
