Education’s Grand Prix

The state of Delaware is putting together an application that could earn up to $75 million for our schools from the $4.35 billion federal Race to the Top fund. This is the largest education initiative in President Obama’s economic stimulus package, and will provide only a small number of states with tens of millions of dollars to implement innovative, ambitious education improvements.

Delaware is recognized as a “state to watch,” which is very encouraging.  Yet our ability to out-compete other forward-thinking states requires a bold, comprehensive, and pioneering application.

In response, Governor Jack Markell has just released “Delaware’s Plan to Strengthen Our Schools,” which will form the basis of the state’s Race to the Top proposal.  You can find it here.  It aligns quite tightly with Vision 2015, in its innovative approach, its focus on student achievement, its demand for accountability from all parties, and the significant supports and opportunities it will provide for educators.  Key elements include: rigorous college- and career-ready standards with valid and reliable high-quality assessments; teacher effectiveness and the equitable distribution of qualified teachers for all students; pre-K to college and career data systems that track progress and foster continuous improvement; and intensive support and effective interventions to turn around Delaware’s lowest performing schools.

Click here to read the complete list of the proposed regulations recently submitted to the State Board of Education.  And click here to read more about the recently released federal guidelines for “Race to the Top” applications.

“Race to the Top” is a grants program.  So it’s about resources.  But it is fundamentally about what is needed to give all children access to excellent education.  Vision 2015 stands behind this effort and we welcome your support and interest.

To learn more about Delaware’s Race to the Top application, read a recent editorial from The News Journal.

In the News

The success of the Vision Network – composed of 25 schools serving 20,000 students in Delaware – is gaining prominence within Delaware and on the national front.  Recent articles provide a look at the people and practices that make the Network so noteworthy.

§         Tristan Spates, an English teacher at St. Georges Technical High School, tells of her school’s success as a Vision Network school.

§         Dr. Libia Gil, a senior fellow at the American Institutes for Research, cites Delaware’s Vision Network as a national leader in its commitment to addressing the key levers for education reform, which are now recognized and promoted across the country by the U.S. Department of Education.

§         Dr. Sondra Shippen, head of the Kuumba Academy Charter School, also a Vision Network school, hopes that all Delawareans - business leaders, legislators, educators and parents - will stand in support of the Governor’s Race to the Top application and make Delaware schools models of excellence.

Vision-aries

“One of the encouraging things here [in Delaware] is Vision 2015 and the fact that you have leadership here from the universities, from the schools, from the unions and from the business community working together, because this hard work does not happen without an organization like that driving it over the course of a number of years.”

- William H. Guenther, President and Founder of Mass Insight Education & Research Institute, at Vision 2015 and Delaware's Race to the Top, October 27, 2009. Check out Guenther's full presentation and video of his panel.

Contact us! 

For more information on how to become involved with Vision 2015, please visit our web site, http://www.vision2015delaware.org, or e-mail us at info@vision2015delaware.org.

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Smarter Spending Update

On Thursday, November 19, Delaware Education Secretary Lillian Lowery presented her proposed public education budget for the upcoming year. Her department's request of $1.17 billion is $3.68 million less than last year's. Read more.

Dr. Lowery noted that the smaller budget request is a result of "doing more with less." Earlier this year, for example, the DOE proposed merging district and charter school administrative services to increase efficiency and save money. This would create four regional service centers to provide things like professional development and human resources. Currently there are nineteen district providers. This type of service consolidation was recommended by the Leadership in Educational Achievement in Delaware (LEAD) Committee in its Cost Efficiency Study as a way to capture up to $34 million in administrative efficiencies, so more money can be directed to crucial classroom initiatives.

While a tighter public education budget could challenge school and district leaders, the opportunity for increased flexibility and control over local spending could assist administrators in meeting the unique needs of their students. Flexibility—with accountability—aligns with Vision 2015's recommendation to "empower principals to be great school leaders, with enough knowledge, authority and flexibility to get results," and with the LEAD Committee's Report on Education Funding in Delaware, which called on our state to update the way it raises and distributes taxpayer dollars for public education to better meet the diverse needs of individual students.

 Did You Know?

Mississippi passed legislation this year that gives state government the power to intervene in low performing schools after only two years of failure in meeting academic targets.  This legislation establishes a recovery school district similar to Louisiana’s, and gives Mississippi the ability to hold superintendents and local school boards accountable for the performance of their schools.  Learn more about the Children First Act here. More and more states are pushing for legislation like this to ensure low performing schools are not allowed to languish for years before something is done to turn them around.

 Mark Your Calendars!

Delaware School Choice Open Enrollment Period

November 2, 2009 – January 13, 2009

School choice applications, for students in grades 1-12, are due to the "District of Choice" on or before the second Wednesday in January for the school year beginning in September.

For more information, visit the district website of your choice school, or visit the Delaware Department of Education website.

 Project Tomorrow’s Speak Up Survey

Through December 18, elementary and secondary students, teachers, administrators, and parents from across the nation have the opportunity to share their ideas and opinions on how technology should be used in the education process, through Project Tomorrow’s latest annual Speak Up survey. Results are shared with participating schools, so that they can use the data for planning and community discussions. Results are also used by government agencies and other organizations to inform programs and policies. For more information please visit Project Tomorrow's website.   

December is Read a New Book month. This is a great opportunity to expose your children to new books, especially preschool aged children.  Spend some time focusing on early literacy skills during this month. Your children will enjoy learning and build literacy skills

Add your community event to our webpage—visit the Vision 2015 community events page.