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    August 31, 1995                                    (202) 401-1008

The Goals 2000: Educate America Act, passed by Congress last year 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 -- no regulations have been or will be issued under the school improvement initiative.

In spite of the fact that Goals 2000 is supporting school improvement in 48 states, funds for continued school improvement are in jeopardy. President Clinton sought $750 million for Goals 2000 in fiscal year 1996, but the House voted to eliminate all funds for the education improvement initiative as part of $4 billion in cuts to education. The Senate will take up its fiscal year 1996 appropriations bill in September.

"North Carolina plans to use its second-year Goals 2000 funding to award local school districts more that 45 grants for local school improvement," said Riley. "As the state aims to help students reach challenging academic standards, this added support will help local schools expand the use of educational technology; improve curriculum in core subjects, and help teachers develop their skills and knowledge throughout their careers. Efforts such as the Chapel Hill/Carrboro City Schools' partnership with the University of North Carolina, that trains teachers to better teach math and enlists parents and communities in improving learning, can make a difference."

The second year of support -- $362 million for state and local grants in fiscal year 1995 -- will help states and communities implement 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.

"Goals 2000 makes a vital contribution to school improvement," Riley continued. "We must not abandon the children, teachers, schools and communities that have worked so hard to make schools better.

"Improving teaching and learning is critical to the nation's future. 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."

North Carolina joins Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Kansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, and Washington as states who are receiving a second year of funding to support community efforts to improve schools. Ninety percent of the new funds will go directly from the state to local school districts.

North Carolina's first-year Goals 2000 grant totaled $2,060,116. Forty-eight states and nine territories received almost $85 million in first-year Goals 2000 support.