(republished with permission of the Washington State School Directors’ Association)
Representatives from WSSDA, NSBA, and about 800 other other organizations participated in a conference call on Aug. 12 with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and other Education Department officials regarding the implementation of the $10 billion Education Jobs Fund approved earlier this week by Congress and President Obama. It is projected that the state of Washington will receive approximately $205 million for distribution to school districts around the state.
While some of the nuts and bolts are still being worked out, a clearer picture is emerging about how the funds will be distributed and what parameters are attached to them. Here are the highlights from the conference call presentation:
- Secretary Duncan says his department is doing everything it can to “get the money out the door as quickly as possible.” He said governors will be notified of the availability of the application form as early as Friday, Aug. 13. Applications are due by Sept. 9, but Duncan is urging governors “not to wait.” His goal is to award the funds to states within two weeks of the application being received.
- In the application, states must affirm that they are complying with Maintenance of Effort requirements and are not using the money for “rainy day” funds or other state programs.
- States must choose one of two options for distributing the money: 1) Through their regular state allocation formulas or 2) through their Title I distribution formulas. The law allows states to reserve two percent of the award for administrative purposes.
- The law stipulates that funds must be used for salaries and benefits for school-based employees, including teachers, principals, and support staff. Funds may not be used for compensation for district-level employees such as superintendents and departmental directors (an exception would be district-level employees who spend 100 percent of their time working in the schools).
- Duncan says his department is structuring the fund to allow “maximum flexibility” for school districts, with options such as rehiring or recalling laid off teachers, restoring furlough days or professional development days and reinstating teachers in afterschool or summer school programs. “The purpose of the law is to give funds to teachers at the local level to benefit students in the classroom,” Duncan said. If states and districts are not meeting the intent, he said, “we will challenge them.”
- Funds awarded to the states must be made available to districts for the 2010-11 school year. Districts have the option of using the funds for the coming year or carrying over some or all of the funds into the 2011-12 school year. All funds must be obligated by Sept. 2012.
Guidelines and examples are expected to be posted on the Education Department’s website, www.ed.gov, by the end of the week. Questions may also be sent directly to the department at EducationJobsFund@ed.gov.
David Brine, WSSDA Communications Director
