Resource Allocation, Reinvestment, and Education Reform May 18, 2009

Amid strapped state and local budgets and a weak national economy, some states and districts have responded to their budget woes by shortening the school week, laying off teachers, and withholding resources from innovative education reforms. Often, these decisions have been made with little regard to their impact on student achievement. Instead, the scarcity of resources should provide an opportunity to prioritize and make investments in strategies and reforms that are likely to yield positive academic outcomes in the long-term.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act offers an unprecedented opportunity to encourage bold, innovative education reforms that will bolster and strengthen America's economic future. Strategic investments include initiatives that will support high quality instruction in the classroom and the hiring and retaining of effective teachers; school improvement strategies, such as expanded learning time, to help turn around struggling schools; and promising new models, such as early college high schools, to redesign American high schools and better prepare students for college and the workforce.

Join the Center for American Progress in an event to take stock of the current opportunities in education reform and discuss how strategic allocations of resources can lead to long-term education and economic growth. Speakers will discuss viable ways to use stimulus funds for reform, strategies to improve our schools, and how we can make sure highly effective teachers are in the places we need them most. In addition, several new reports related to expanded learning time and performance-based compensation for teachers will be released.

Official Website: http://www.americanprogress.org/events/2009/05/edconf.html