A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

     FOR RELEASE                               Contact:  Melinda Kitchell Malico      April 9, 1996                                       (202) 401-1576

Goals 2000, passed by Congress in 1994 with bipartisan support, helps states and communities advance their own school improvement efforts, based on the results of local decision making. Riley said Goals 2000 offers unprecedented flexibility and no regulations have been or will be issued under the school improvement initiative.

Although Goals 2000 is supporting school improvement in almost every state, funds for continued school improvement are in jeopardy. President Clinton sought $750 million for Goals 2000 in fiscal year 1996, but Congress has yet to complete action on the Education Department's fiscal year 1996 appropriations bill. The House voted last July to eliminate all funds for Goals 2000 as part of $4 billion in cuts to education, while the Senate has approved $350 million for the education improvement initiative.

"During the first year of Goals 2000, Wisconsin awarded 26 grants to help 94 local school districts work on a range of school improvement and teacher professional development activities," said Riley. "For instance, a Goals 2000 subgrant of $130,000 went to Ashland School District to develop challenging academic standards, a revitalized curriculum, and reliable ways to measure student progress. They will also work to design effective ways to use technology in education, provide ongoing staff development and encourage strong community involvement. Bayfield, Butternut, Drummond, Glidden, Hayward, Hurley, Maple, Mellen, Northwood, Solon Springs, South Shore, Superior, Washburn, and Winter school districts are part of the Ashland Goals 2000 effort. In addition, a $20,000 Goals 2000 subgrant will help the Medford School District create the Rural Technet' telecommunications network which will allow rural schools and communities to access educational resources through telecommunications technologies. These are just some of the promising things going on in Wisconsin and around the nation under Goals 2000."

The second year of support for states and communities -- a total of $362 million for grants in fiscal year 1995 -- will help advance local school improvement plans to raise student academic achievement, involve parents in schools, bring technology into the classroom, upgrade teacher professional development, and create partnerships with business and community groups. States that submit a school improvement plan developed with input from parents, educators, community members and the private sector, as well as states that show substantial progress toward that end, are eligible for second-year funding.

"Improving teaching and learning is critical to the nation's future," said Riley. "It is essential that we continue to assist states and communities as they develop and adopt challenging academic standards that will guide the education of students into the next century."

Wisconsin's first-year Goals 2000 grant totaled $1,570,588. Forty eight states and nine territories received almost $85 million in first year Goals 2000 support. Forty states have already received second year funding under Goals 2000, and other states will receive funding throughout the coming months. Ninety percent of the new funds will go directly from states to local school districts and schools.