Learning Matters

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has more power than any other education secretary in the nation’s history. Duncan possesses 4.35 billion dollars in discretionary funds to push the reforms his administration believes will turn around the country’s failing schools, such as more charters and higher standards. What’s more, to get a piece of the money states must compete for it.

The competition is called the “Race to the Top,” and it is unlike any education reform efforts of the past. This series of reports seeks to cover the history of education reforms in the U.S. and tracks the current competition for a piece of that multi-billion dollar fund.