More than $7.8 million in grants have been awarded by the U.S. Department of Education to 24 states, territories and outlying areas for special education improvement efforts as part of a competitive process to help reform and improve services for children with disabilities.

A total of 42 states, Puerto Rico and outlying territories competed for the awards, known as General Supervision Enhancement Grants. The grants are intended to complement and support the accountability system developed by the department’s Office of Special Education Programs by assisting states and lead agencies to develop and improve their infrastructure for holding states, districts and schools accountable for improving student achievement.

"Accountability for improved performance rests at the heart of our efforts to improve American education," said U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige. "These awards will help move us toward assuring that our special education programs are offering quality educational services to all students with disabilities so that no child is left behind."

Activities supported by the grants include:

• developing data-driven, evidence-based state monitoring systems that focus on areas that have the greatest impact on better outcomes for children with disabilities;
• enhancing data systems to ensure that they are capable of interfacing with each other so that no child is left behind when transitioning from programs for infants and toddlers to services for older children;
• creating a statewide student numbering system that incorporates students with disabilities and general education students, giving the state the capability of tracking student outcomes and making student-based program impact evaluations;
• conducting school "leaver" studies to determine outcomes for secondary-age students with disabilities;
• inserting new data elements into statewide student data systems in order to increase state and district accountability for students with disabilities;
• using funds to increase significantly the involvement of parents and advocates in special education accountability activities;
• enhancing the state’s technical assistance and dissemination system to ensure consistency across the state; and
• providing extensive support through the use of national experts to develop improvement activities that result in systemic change rather than low-impact process change.

Applicants may request funds to focus on conducting self-assessments, developing or enhancing data systems as accountability vehicles, designing a process to conduct improvement planning activities based on their own self-assessment and/or Education Department monitoring findings, and/or developing or enhancing state technical assistance and dissemination systems.

Grants will be funded for one year.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Following is a list of grantees, with contact names, phone numbers and award amounts.

U.S. Office of Special Education Programs General Supervision Enhancement Grants