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Obama’s Education Leaders Have Been Busy
By Donna Gundle-Krieg April 27, 2009 Note: to comment on this story or other stories about education, please go to Examiner.com
President Barack Obama’s education policies are moving forward at lightning speed as billions of dollars of stimulus money is being released to states.
So far, the White House has posted that funds have been released to California, Main, Utah, Oregon, Minnesota, Mississippi, Illinoi and South Dakota under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009.
In addition, several new key leaders with very fancy titles were recently appointed by Education Secretary Arne Duncan.
“Robert Shireman is deputy undersecretary and Massie Ritsch is deputy assistant secretary for External Affairs and Outreach at the U.S. Department of Education,” said Duncan.
In addition, Secretary Duncan Peter Groff is Director for the Faith-Based and Community Initiatives Center in the Office of the Secretary, and Glenn Cummings is Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Vocational & Adult Education.
See below for more information on these people and their roles.
In addition to the new leaders, the White House has been posting announcements as each state applies for and receives stimulus funds.
“$1.4 billion is now available for Illinois, and $85.4 million is now available for South Dakota under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009,” according to the US Department of Education website.
It all sounds so wonderful, doesn’t it? Here’s how the press release worded the funding requirements:
“In order to receive today's funds, state xyz provided assurances that they will collect, publish, analyze and act on basic information regarding the quality of classroom teachers, annual student improvements, college readiness, the effectiveness of state standards and assessments, progress on removing charter caps, and interventions in turning around underperforming schools.
“State xyz is also required by the U.S. Department of Education to report the number of jobs saved through Recovery Act funding, the amount of state and local tax increases averted, and how funds are used.”
The following states have had funds made available:
California $4 billion
Illinois $1.4 billion
Minnesota $547 million
Oregon $382 million
Utah $321 million
Mississippi $321 million
Maine $130 million
South Dakota $85.4 million
See below for more information on the stimulus money as well as the two new appointees.
Also, see:
Obama’s Education Reforms Show He Listens to Both Sides
Below: recent press releases from the U.S. Department of Education
U.S. Education Secretary Duncan Announces Appointments at the U.S. Department of Education
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced the appointment of Robert Shireman as deputy undersecretary and Massie Ritsch as deputy assistant secretary for External Affairs and Outreach at the U.S. Department of Education.
In his role, Shireman will advise the Department on college financial issues and other higher education initiatives. A leading expert on college access and financial aid, he previously served as a congressional appointee to the Federal Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, an advisor to U.S. Sen. Paul Simon and as part of President Clinton's White House National Economic Council. Shireman is founder of the Institute for College Access and Success and the Project on Student Debt. He holds a bachelor's degree in economics from University of California at Berkeley and masters' degrees from Harvard in education and the University of San Francisco in public administration.
Ritsch will oversee outreach to education associations, foundations and think-tanks. He comes to the Department from his job as communications director at the Center for Responsive Politics where he served as chief strategist for the organization and, among other duties, oversaw the organization's award-winning Website, OpenSecrets.org. Ritsch also served as vice president of the Sugerman Communications Group in Los Angeles, where he helped salvage public funds for a consortium of innovative schools chartered by the Los Angeles Board of Education, as well as garner support for a universal preschool initiative. Prior to his time at Sugerman, Ritsch covered local education issues and the 2000 presidential campaign for the Los Angeles Times. He received his bachelor's degree in politics from Princeton University.
Sample Press Release Regarding Release of Funds to States:
Nearly $1.4 Billion in Recovery Funds Now Available for Illinois to Save
Teaching Jobs and Drive Education Reform
Application
for Part 1 of South Dakota's State Stabilization Funds Approved Today
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced that nearly $1.4
billion is now available for Illinois under the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. This funding will lay the foundation for a
generation of education reform and help save thousands of teaching jobs at
risk of state and local budget cuts.
"The real impact of the nearly $2 billion Illinois has received so far will be determined not at the federal level, but at the local level in districts across the state," Duncan said. "We will be watching to see if Illinois state leaders, superintendents, principals and teachers seize this critical opportunity to turn around whole systems and schools."
Illinois is receiving $1.4 billion today per the State's successful completion of Part 1 of the State Stabilization Application, which was made available April 1. Eighty two percent of these funds are to be distributed to public elementary, secondary, and higher education institutions, with the remaining 18 percent to be available for education, school modernization, public safety, or other government services. Illinois, California and South Dakota are the first three states to successfully complete applications and be approved for the first round of state stabilization funding. Illinois will be eligible to apply for another $678 million in state stabilization funds this fall.
To date, Illinois has received nearly $500 million in education stimulus funds—representing a combination of funding for Title I, IDEA, Vocational Rehabilitation grants, Independent Living grants, Impact Aid dollars and Homeless Education grants. On April 1, Illinois received more than $210 million in Title I funding and more than $270 million in IDEA funding. This amount represents 50 percent of the total Title I and IDEA funding for which Illinois is eligible. On April 1, Illinois also received more than $10 million in Vocational Rehab funds and nearly $2 million in Independent Living funds. On April 10, the state received more than $624,000 in Impact Aid Funding and $2.6 million in Homeless Education grants.
In order to receive today's funds, Illinois provided assurances that they will collect, publish, analyze and act on basic information regarding the quality of classroom teachers, annual student improvements, college readiness, the effectiveness of state standards and assessments, progress on removing charter caps, and interventions in turning around underperforming schools.
Illinois is also required by the U.S. Department of Education to report the number of jobs saved through Recovery Act funding, the amount of state and local tax increases averted, and how funds are used.
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