What Are the Stimulus Packages for Public Schools in California?

School stimulus money could help classrooms afford new supplies.

In April 2009, almost $4 billion was given to California as a stimulus package for the state's floundering school system. The money was meant to help schools that had been drastically affected by teacher layoffs and budget cuts, such as the $5 billion budget cut that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had proposed. Used properly, such money could rescue schools from their ongoing plight and lack of resources.

First Funds

In 2009, President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan handed approximately $4 billion to schools in California. The money was meant to save the jobs of teachers, at a time when teaching positions were being eliminated at an alarming rate. The money could also be used by schools to purchase new equipment and supplies. These funds were just a portion of the $100 billion that was to be distributed across 14,000 school districts in all 50 states. The $4 billion stimulus was just the beginning; California was expected to get about $11 billion in the end.

Getting Aid

The stimulus money wasn't just for any school that asked for it. To receive these funds, California schools had to prove that they were making progress with students and teacher quality. The state of California promised that it would work toward hiring quality teachers and monitoring the effectiveness of the state's academic standards. Schools with a large percentage of failing students had to assure that this trend would not continue, and the performance of students would increase. These conditions also had to be met if schools were to get the next stimulus money disbursement.

Unused Funds

Almost a year after the first stimulus disbursement was issued, most of the money had not been used to help schools. Instead, $71 million of the money sat unused in state bank accounts while officials debated the best way to spend it. The money originally was supposed to go to schools as quickly as possible, which did not happen. Although the money was meant to go directly to school districts, who could then make their own decisions on how best to spend it, lawmakers held onto it as they tried to make those decisions themselves.

Race to the Top

The Race to the Top program was designed to reward states whose schools implemented ambitious plans for education reform. In 2010, states applied for a part of the program's millions of dollars on offer. California applied for some of the money, which it intended to use to improve a data-tracking system that would track students from preschool age until they entered the work force after college. The application was turned down, and California was beat out by states such as Tennessee, Delaware and New York.

References

• "The Washington Times"; California Gets First School Stimulus; 2009
• "Capitol Weekly"; California Educational Community Awaits Federal Stimulus Funds; Capitol Weekly Staff; 2009
• "California Watch"; As Budget Crisis Crippled Schools, $71 Million Stimulus Sat Unused; Corey G. Johnson, 2010
• "The Huffington Post"; California Denied Education Stimulus Funds...Again; Louis Freedberg; 2010