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Race to the Top: additional information
12/30/2009 9:10 AM


December 30, 2009

Colleagues, you need to know about Race to the Top (RTTT).

Needless to say, you have heard much about RTTT. By January 13, 2010, school districts and charter schools need to make a decision about participating.  That is the deadline for schools to sign a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the MN Department of Education (MDE) if you plan to participate. As you know, the grant comprises the following four components:

    • Standards and Assessments
    • Data Systems
    • Great Teachers and Leaders
    • Turning Around the Persistently Lowest Performing Schools.

The RTTT grant, if funded, will require all districts that participate to sign on to Q-Comp by 2012. The grant will include Q-Comp for principals which is something your professional association supports and more funding to gear up the Minnesota Principals’ Academy. For your information, Education Minnesota (EM) has presented their own plan, which includes:

  • Turning low-performing schools into educator-led centers of teaching excellence where the most successful teaching methods can be identified and disseminated statewide.
  • Building a program to recruit promising young people to become teachers in high-needs schools.
  • Mandating comprehensive induction programs for new teachers.
  • Using state funds to expand the teacher-led Educational Research & Dissemination program statewide.
  • Providing training for all teachers and principals on using data to adapt teaching to students’ needs.

As instructional leaders, you should be aware that EM has advised their district leaders to use caution in agreeing to support district participation.

While the RTTT grant does create a much needed vision for K-12 education and has the potential to integrate previously disconnected elements into an aligned system, MESPA remains watchful and concerned about adequate funding, sustainability, and genuine collaboration as key components of the grant are developed. Through our initial collaboration, we had hoped that the critical connection of Early Childhood Education would have been included in the grant, and it was not.

I urge you to read the Frequently Asked Questions and Memorandum of Agreement documents provided by MDE (scroll down), so you understand the potential ramifications of the RTTT grant.

The MDE will find out in April 2010 if the grant is approved by the United States Department of Education.

Best wishes to you as you start the new year in your schools — and if you have any RTTT questions or concerns, please contact me.

P. Fred Storti
MESPA Executive Director
651-999-7312
pfstorti@mespa.net


 rttt_faq_12.23.09.doc  
Frequently Asked Questions on Race To The Top (responses revised 12/23/09)
 20091208_leamoa_charters_v10_locked__3_.doc  
Race to the Top Memorandum of Agreement for charter schools (different signature page than for school districts).
 20091208_leamoa_districts_v10_locked.doc  
Race to the Top Memorandum of Agreement for school districts (different signature page than for charter schools).



Revised materials
Scroll down for new materials provided by the Minnesota Department of Education on 12/23/09:
  • Revised responses to Frequently Asked Questions.
  • Revised Memorandums of Agreement for school districts and charter schools.

RTT Overview

Race to the Top offers the opportunity for Minnesota schools to compete for millions of dollars in grant monies from the U.S. Department of Education. Leaders from K-12 education, higher education, business and the minority community have been working on Minnesota’s application and are now seeking school districts to sign-on.

If Minnesota is awarded funds through Race to the Top, more than half of the money will be designated for local school districts that pledge to implement the reforms. 

The application for Race to the Top requires states to meet the following six assurances:

  • State Success Factors - Have a well articulated and supported reform strategy in place with a sound implementation plan that includes past success in raising student achievement and closing the achievement gap;
  • Standards and Assessments - Adopt internationally benchmarked standards and assessments that prepare students for success in college and the workplace;
  • Data Systems to Support Instruction - Build data systems that measure student success and inform teachers and principals how they can improve their practice;
  • Greater Teachers and Leaders - Recruit, develop, retain and reward effective teachers and principals;
  • Turning Around Struggling Schools - Turn around our persistently lowest-performing schools; and
  • General Selection Criteria - Make education funding a priority, ensuring successful conditions for charters and other innovative school models and demonstrate other reform conditions.

In addition, there is a separate competitive grant program for states’ efforts in science, technological, engineering and math (STEM). Minnesota’s recent efforts in STEM also make the state well-positioned to win this competition.



Mission: The Minnesota Elementary School Principals' Association is dedicated to promoting and improving education for children and youth, strengthening the role as educational leader for elementary and middle level principals, and collaborating with partners in education to assist in achieving these goals.

Leading schools toward excellence through the MESPA vision to be the premiere resource for preparing today's principals for tomorrow and a strong leading voice for public education.

Minnesota Elementary School Principals' Association
1667 North Snelling Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55108
651.999.7310     MN toll free 800.642.6807    
Fax: 651.999.7311     E-mail: mespa@mespa.net