Author: PCG | Posted: 6. August 2010 04:09

On August 4, 2010 the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) announced the award of 49 grants from the $650 million Investing in Innovation (i3) fund.  Like Race to the Top, i3 is a competitive grant program. Nearly 1,700 school districts, schools, and nonprofit organizations submitted applications with proposals for education innovations.  The goal of the i3 competition was to reward applicants with the most innovative proposals to improve teacher effectives, turn around low-performing schools, revise standards and assessments, and/or enhance data systems.  The 49 winning applications will focus on work in 42 states and the District of Columbia.

Before receiving the awards, the winning applicants must obtain private-sector matching funds for 20 percent of their respective awards.  A winning applicant that does not meet this requirement is at risk of losing the award unless USDE grants the applicant a waiver by September 8, 2010.  USDE plans to announce the final award amounts next month after the matching requirements are met and the applicants’ budget standards are verified as consistent with federal guidelines.