New prize is just a fraction of $400M the state lost out on last August in the same competition, run by the federal government
Lifting a copy of the 1,000 page "Race to the Top" application to the podium, Gov. Chris Christie last August explained that a one-page "clerical error" allegedly cost the state $400M in federal funds. The state now has a chance to win $50M in a new round of competition.New Jersey is among nine states eligible to compete for $200 million in a third round of Race to the Top, a federal competition that the state narrowly lost last fall due in part to a costly application error.
The state can seek a grant for up to $50 million, a fraction of the $400 million the state could have won in the competition’s last round. The fallout from the loss gave Gov. Chris Christie a political black eye and led to his former education commissioner’s firing.
“We had many more competitive applications than we had funds to award,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who added that the new grants will help winners expand their “capacity” for and “commitment” to bold reforms.
One lawmaker called the announcement about another round of competition “exciting news.”
“A competition of this kind can only bring more energy to the discussion in our schools, and in our communities, about our efforts to bring about reform,” said State Sen. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex), who chairs the Senate’s education committee.
The state Assembly’s education committee chairman, Patrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex), said the availability of more funding is promising, but does not erase the Christie Administration’s error the last time around.
“The funding is far less than New Jersey could have received had it done its application correctly the first time,” Diegnan said. “Nothing can fix the Christie Administration’s mistake that cost New Jersey taxpayers $400 million, but any assistance is worthwhile.”
The state’s eligibility to compete for this new pot of money stems from its distinction as a finalist in the competition’s previous rounds, all of whom scores above 412 out of 500 for their reform proposals. The 12 winners so far submitted proposals that earned scores above 440.
“Every state that applied for Race to the Top funds now has a blueprint for raising educational quality across America,” Duncan said.
The new funding comes from a fiscal year 2011 appropriations bill passed by Congress in April that allots $700 million for Race to the Top. The federal government will use $500 million to launch Race to the Top – Early Learning Challenge, a competition for money to spur early childhood education innovation.