A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n
	United States Department of Education Goals 2000: Educate America Act October 1996 Update

The Goals 2000: Educate America Act supports states and communities in their efforts to improve academic achievement by raising academic standards, supporting high-quality teacher professional development, expanding the use of computers and technology in classrooms, and increasing parental and community involvement in education.

Bipartisan History

• The Goals 2000 Act is based on lessons learned from state and local education improvement efforts sparked by the Reagan Administration's 1983 report A Nation At Risk;

• The nation's governors and President Bush laid the groundwork for the Goals 2000 Act in 1990 when they established national goals for education and launched a grassroots state and local effort to reach them;

• The Goals 2000 Act passed with strong bipartisan support in Congress and with the endorsement of every major national business, parent, and education organization;

• The Goals 2000 Act, signed into law by President Clinton on March 31, 1994, recognizes that education is a state and local responsibility, but it must also be a national priority. The Act provides direct support to state and local school improvement efforts.

Goals 2000:

• encourages each state to develop challenging academic standards for students;

• represents the first federal education act that helps states and communities build on and coordinate their existing reform efforts rather than creating a new discrete program;

• provides incentive grants for schools, communities and states to support their own effective approach to improve student achievement;

• provides funds to states and school districts for better teacher training and professional development;

• encourages parents to get more involved in the education of their children;

• promotes flexibility by providing, for the first time in history, authority for the Secretary of Education to waive certain regulations to assist states and local communities in implementing school improvements.

Overview of Implementation of the Goals 2000 Act

Goals 2000 recognizes that there is no cookie-cutter approach to improving education. It supports a wide array of state and local approaches to raise academic achievement.

No regulations have been or will be issued for Goals 2000. The application for Goals 2000 first-year funds was only four pages. On average, state funding awards have been granted in less than a month following submission of the application.

Year 1 --

Under Title III of Goals 2000, participating states used funds to form broad-based citizen panels responsible for developing or building upon a comprehensive statewide school improvement plan. At least 60 percent of the funds were passed on to individual school districts and schools for teacher professional development and district and school strategic planning. Congress appropriated $105 million for Goals 2000 in 1994. Forty-eight states received first- year Goals 2000 funds.

Years 2-5: --

Funds for years two through five will support implementation of state, district and community education improvement plans. At least 90 percent of the funds must be passed on to individual school districts and schools. Congress appropriated $362 million for 1995, $340 million for 1996 and $476 million for 1997. Forty- six states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico received second-year Goals 2000 funding and a total of 66 local districts in Montana, New Hampshire and Oklahoma receive their state's share of the funds directly from the U.S. Department of Education. Twenty- six states have already been awarded third-year Goals 2000 funding.

Every state is using Goals 2000 to support its own unique approach to improving education. In Massachusetts, Goals 2000 funds are being used to support the creation of charter schools. In Kentucky, funds are being used to encourage parental involvement in ongoing reform efforts. In Illinois, challenging standards for student achievement have been set in six core subject areas.

Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia have had their comprehensive statewide school improvement plans approved through a peer review process. A team of teachers, business people, and community members involved in education reform efforts across the country reviews each plan and makes a recommendation to the Secretary for plan approval.

Colorado, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Texas and Vermont are the first states in the nation to be designated Ed-Flex states, giving the waiver authority of the Secretary of Education to the states to assist in the implementation of school reform efforts.

While implementation is still in the early stages, it is evident that Goals 2000 is uniting local and state leaders in a combined effort to provide -- community by community -- a high quality education that prepares all children for responsible citizenship and productive employment in our modern economy.

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This page last modified October 29, 2001 (jer)