Six states—Michigan, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, New Jersey, and Vermont—will share $280 million from the Race to the Top early-learning challenge, the U.S. Department of Education said today.

With these third-round winners, the number of states now working on plans to revamp early education is 20.

Sixteen states plus the District of Columbia had applied for the money. Arizona just missed winning, placing 7th and just outside the victory circle.

This latest round of Race to the Top is funded by a larger $500 million allocation from Congress. The Education Department split off $120 million for a second district-level competition, in which five winners were announced earlier this week. And, they gave six previous winners an additional $89 million.

In 2011, nine states shared $500 million: California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Washington.

In 2012, five more states split $133 million: Colorado, Illinois, New Mexico, Oregon, and Wisconsin.