3. Analysis of State SIG Applications
By November 2010, ED had approved SIG applications from all 50 states and the District
of Columbia. An analysis of these state applications is presented in this section,
which addresses the report's first key question and the following related questions:
- How are the persistently lowest-achieving Tier I and Tier II schools defined and
identified by states? Which intervention models are allowable in each state?
- How are states prioritizing the awarding of funds to Tier I, Tier II and Tier III
schools?
- How are states determining whether a LEA has the capacity to support a Tier I or
Tier II school?
- How are states monitoring and supporting SIG implementation?
Section 3.1 provides a description of the methodology used to review the 51 SIG
applications, and Sections 3.2, 3.3, 3.4 and 3.5 present the results from this review
in the context of the questions above.
Key Findings
- Identifying SIG schools. Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia reported
using three years of achievement data to identify persistently lowest-achieving
schools. Ten states reported using one year of data, eight states reported using
two years of data, and one state reported using seven years of data.
- Intervention models. The turnaround, transformation and closure models are authorized
in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Four states will exclude the restart
model, and four states plan to modify the SIG-defined intervention models.
- Determining LEA capacity. Twenty states plan to use the LEA applications for SIG
funds as the primary evidence of LEA capacity, in which LEAs are to provide a self-report
on their own capacity levels. Seventeen states plan to use a district audit or needs
assessment.
- Monitoring LEA progress. Eighteen states plan to monitor progress in SIG-awarded
LEAs and schools more than once each year. Thirty-nine states plan to monitor SIG
implementation through site visits to SIG-awarded schools.
- State support for SIG implementation. Twenty-six states plan to enhance existing
supports to assist SIG schools. Nineteen states plan to assign a school or district
coach, and twelve states plan to provide technical assistance teams to support SIG
schools.