After the U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the “Race to the Top” grant package last July, states around the country have been acting faster than a college student dropping classes with mandatory attendance policies. States have been passing reform packages and drawing up plans that will improve teaching and learning,.

Everyone wants a part of the $4.35 billion in funds, and because of this educational gold rush, legislators in our nation’s capital have set the bar high for those looking for a cut. All states have to first prove themselves worthy of being bestowed any of the grant money. The applications each state submits must outline goals for improving education and provide evidence that they have already taken steps to raise the level of student achievement. It’s like the stuffed rabbit they put in front of dogs at the race track — place $4 billion in the line of sight of educators and politicians and watch them scramble.

The “Race to the Top” fund is brilliant. It has forced school districts to examine their policies about education. According to the U.S. Department of Education, the objectives of the program are: to create standards and evaluations to prepare students to succeed in college; to build data systems that assess student growth and success; to recruit, develop, reward and retain effective teachers and principals; and to turn around the lowest-achieving schools in the country. Essentially, making states compete against each other is forcing everyone to make changes that should have been made years ago.

Here’s the kicker, though: according to a document of frequently asked questions and answers released by the state of Wisconsin, “the districts are only obligated to carry out the Memorandum of Understanding if Wisconsin receives a ‘Race to the Top’ grant, and they complete the final work plan.” Regardless of the fact that the policies and changes each district has written up need to be implemented out of necessity, these improvements will only be made if Wisconsin’s application is superior enough.

Wisconsin busted out of the starting gates at breakneck speed. In November, Gov. Jim Doyle and our state Legislature passed four bills that built up Wisconsin’s resume. The most significant of these eliminated the state’s ability to prohibit the use of students’ test scores to evaluate teacher performance. At the time this bill was passed, Wisconsin and Nevada were the only two states left in the country that had such a law in place.

The Badger State was looking better and better every day. If we were to receive the estimated $150 to $250 million that our state qualifies for, the Department of Public Instruction will provide training for participating districts to reach the goals of each district’s individual plan. However, all the hard work that our state has done could be for nothing.

There is currently a dispute in Milwaukee regarding who should have power to head Milwaukee Public Schools. The two contestants are Mayor Tom Barrett and State Superintendent Tony Evers. According to an article written by Erin Richards of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “it is unclear whether the state legislature will vote on either of them before the January 19 first-round application deadline.” While who has control over MPS may not seem like a big deal, a Doyle spokesperson said in the same article that this decision will “shake up the status quo and earn the state points for trying something different.”

The battle for power between two men could potentially set Wisconsin back in the race for funds. Does anyone else see a problem with that? Why jeopardize the opportunity to better the education of countless students across the state over a power struggle?

The goal of the grant program is to benefit students by assessing the entire educational system. It should not be about who is running a certain district. Both men are qualified to make educated decisions about the future of Milwaukee’s public school system, and each has teams of people who will help them with the process. Wisconsin needs this money to make significant changes. So let’s get this one done, and we’ll worry about the rest later.

Chelsea Lawliss ([email protected]) is a sophomore intending to major in journalism.