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Obama unveils $900M plan for schools

President offers $900M program that would help nation’s 5,000 lowest-performing schools.

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Staff and wire reports Updated 11:33 AM Tuesday, March 2, 2010

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Monday, March 1, addressed the nation’s school dropout epidemic, proposing $900 million to states and school districts that agree to drastically change or even shutter their worst performing schools.

Only about 70 percent of entering high school freshmen go on to graduate.

“There’s got to be a sense of accountability,” Obama said at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce during an education event sponsored by the America’s Promise Alliance.

The president’s plan would seek to help 5,000 of the nation’s lowest-performing schools over the next five years.

To get a share of the new money, states and school districts must adopt one of four approaches to fix their struggling schools: Replace district principals and at least half of the school staff; close and reopen schools as charter schools or under an educational management organization; close schools and enroll students in other, higher-achieving schools in the district; or require schools to address teacher effectiveness, instruction, learning and teacher planning time, and operational flexibility.

Locally, though Jefferson Twp. Local Schools is on state academic watch, Superintendent Richard Gates said his district does not qualify for any of the options laid out by the president.

He said Jefferson Local is designated as a Tier 3 district and only districts designated as Tier 1 or Tier 2 are eligible for the grant funding.

Any money leftover would then be competitively sought by Tier 3 districts that applied by Feb. 26 and are accepted as eligible, Gates said.

“We made sure we applied in time, because we are going to do everything possible to improve our district,” Gates said. To be considered for any remaining money, Gates said districts must “show how the grant dollars would empirically, rather than anecdotally, positively affect your district.”

Jill Moberly, Dayton Public Schools spokeswoman, said the district has not yet determined whether it will be eligible for the programs.

Staff writers Kristin McAllister and Tim Tresslar contributed to this story.

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