• See the narrative portion of applications submitted by 40 states and D.C. for Phase 1 of Race to the Top.
• The grant process for this historic $4 billion program has been strengthened to ensure maximum integrity and transparency.
• 40 states and D.C. submitted applications to compete in Phase 1 of Race to the Top. See the list of 41 applicants and watch President Obama’s announcement about his plans to expand Race to the Top.
• President Obama announced his plans to continue the Race to the Top challenge, requesting $1.35 billion for the program in his FY 2011 budget.
• Secretary Duncan discussed Race to the Top during a conference call with reporters at 1 p.m. January 19. Listen to the call [MP3, 6.3M] or read the transcript [MSWord, 92KB].

Resources for Race to the Top

• A variety of resources to support States in developing their applications, including FAQs(458K) and an Executive Summary of the key policy details PDF (471K)
• The Race to the Top Application MSWord (1.0M)
• More details for applicants in the Notice Inviting Applications PDF (4.5M)

Program Office: Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE)
CFDA Number: 84.395
Program Type: Discretionary/Competitive Grants

Through Race to the Top, we are asking States to advance reforms around four specific areas:

• Adopting standards and assessments that prepare students to succeed in college and the workplace and to compete in the global economy;
• Building data systems that measure student growth and success, and inform teachers and principals about how they can improve instruction;
• Recruiting, developing, rewarding, and retaining effective teachers and principals, especially where they are needed most; and
• Turning around our lowest-achieving schools.

Awards in Race to the Top will go to States that are leading the way with ambitious yet achievable plans for implementing coherent, compelling, and comprehensive education reform. Race to the Top winners will help trail-blaze effective reforms and provide examples for States and local school districts throughout the country to follow as they too are hard at work on reforms that can transform our schools for decades to come.