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Federal Register Notice of Proposed Information Collection Requests for the Reading Excellence Act (REA) Performance Report (October 16, 2002)
The Reading Excellence Program has awarded $327,627,438 in grants to help improve the reading skills of pre kindergarten through third grade children. The grants, under the Reading Excellence Act (REA) program, will help 13 states use scientifically based reading research to improve reading in over 400 schools.
The 13 states that received REA grants this year are: Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
The REA program is designed to provide children with the readiness skills and support they need to learn to read when they enter school and to help each child learn to read well and independently by the end of third grade. Schools receiving grants are expected to train teachers to use a comprehensive reading approach based on research; provide early intervention, such as one-on-one tutoring for children who have trouble learning to read; and organize family literacy programs for parents to support their children's learning to read.
States competed for the three year grants by creating plans for improving reading in the primary grades. The states will now run grant competitions for eligible local school districts. The REA grant program concentrates support in high-poverty districts. Districts may use the funds for teacher professional development, purchase of resources and reading materials, and tutoring and summer programs.
A panel of 21 nationally known experts in reading, research and school reform evaluated the applications. The Education Department (ED), the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the National Institute for Literacy, and the National Academy of Sciences nominated the panel members.
Page last updated on October 18, 2002 (sbw)