Complete Coverage

Rules Set for $4 Billion Race to Top Contest

Final Rules Give States Detailed Map in Quest for $4 Billion in Education Stimulus Aid

For a good shot at $4 billion in grants from the federal Race to the Top Fund , states will need to make a persuasive case for their education reform agendas, demonstrate significant buy-in from local school districts, and devise plans to evaluate teachers and principals based on student performance, according to final regulations released last week by the U.S. Department of Education.

Those three factors will rank as the most important to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and his staff as they weigh states’ applications based on more than 30 criteria , including how friendly their charter school climates are and how they use data to improve instruction.

At stake for states is a slice of the biggest single discretionary pool of education money in the economic-stimulus package passed by Congress in February—a $4.35 billion prize, of which $350 million has been pledged to help consortia of...