NNY Schools Avoid Grant Application
Despite deep financial difficulties faced by most north country public schools, many of them are not planning to apply for competitive grants that could be a financial boost.
They are not applying because they do not qualify as a result of low test scores or not having enough children from low socioeconomic backgrounds.
During Mr. Cuomo's first State of the State Address in 2011, he suggested having two $250 million competitive grants that reward performance, according to www.governor.ny.gov. These grants are back again for the current year.
"If there is a school district that does stellar work, let them compete, let them be rewarded and let them be emulated," he said during the speech.
The $250 million grants were taken out of the proposed education budget,
lowering the amount of aid districts will receive, according to a press release by the Alliance for Quality Education.
"Judging schools based primarily on test scores in two subjects has resulted in teaching to the test, narrowing of the curriculum and a dumbing down of public education," said Nikki Jones, AQE communications director.
One of the grants, a school-performance fund, is eluding every district in the region except Beaver River Central School.
District Superintendent Leueen Smithling said her district may be qualified for $200,000 a year for three years.
The district must pick a Priority Area Program for 35 points. They must also improve elementary and middle school performance in 2009-10 and 2010-11, as well as graduation rates for 50 points.
Ten bonus points are added if the district qualifies as "high need" based on the number of children who qualify for free and reduced lunch. The superintendent said her principals will have data later this week.
"You have to align this program with what you put in for your Race to the Top goals," said Mrs. Smithling. "For us, it would be for our middle-school programs."
She said the district is applying for the grant because Beaver River schools were not on the "in need of improvement" list. She also said the district boasts a 90 percent graduation rate.
"This grant is for schools that are doing well, but that doesn't mean we don't want to do better," she said. "Race to the Top wants every school to do better."
Beaver River is applying for the grant without the help of Jefferson-Lewis Board of Educational Services, according to Jack J. Boak, superintendent of Jefferson-Lewis BOCES.
After discussing the grant with a consultant with Syracuse University and local superintendents, he determined few schools would even rack up the required amount of points to qualify.
"We couldn't even get half of the points required in the total," said Mr. Boak.
He said he does not feel this is a deliberate attempt to aid wealthy schools that continue to boast high graduation rates and test scores.
"There are some smaller districts that did better than others, but it looks like there hasn't been a significant amount of aid to high-need rural districts," he said.
He said it does not help that the 2.5 percent average increase of aid in Jefferson and Lewis County is not going to help local districts get back on track.
LaFargeville Central was one of the districts that does not qualify for the grant, despite being located in a rural, high-need area. Because they are a small district, their test scores and graduation rates fluctuate greatly from year to year.
"We do well, but we don't do exceptionally well," district Superintendent Susan L. Whitney said.
She is planning to speak to state legislatures in hopes of increasing the amount of aid they will receive rather than hope for a competitive grant the district could qualify for.
Thomas R. Burns, St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES superintendent, agreed that this kind of grant does not help schools in the region, among the poorest in the state. St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES has a single grant-application writer the districts share because of severe cutbacks.
He also noted the catch-22 of teaching students who are of a lower socioeconomic background. Schools are running out of money to offer extra programs to help children who need additional assistance because they do not have the reserves or aid the wealthier, downstate schools do.
"Basically, it costs more to teach certain students," he said.
He also said the number of grants districts in St. Lawrence can apply for with confidence are diminishing because of the economy. He feels that the state should be saving instead of throwing large sums in grants that most schools cannot even apply for.
He said both Canton and Potsdam school districts are at the point of dismantling important student programs because of the lack of aid.
"One of the things about the competitive grants, I think it actually intensifies behavior the governor doesn't want to see, and that's spending money," he said.
