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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

9 of 10 school districts sign on for Race to the Top

OLYMPIA – Nearly 9 out of 10 school districts in Washington have signed on to an application to win as much as $250 million in federal money through a program known as Race to the Top. Gov. Chris Gregoire and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn officially mailed off the application to the Department of Education today after a ceremony at Nisqually Middle School in Lacey, Wash. A total of 265 of the state’s 295 school districts joined in the application, which covers 97 percent of Washington students, Gregoire’s office said. The schools are requesting money for a wide variety of programs, from new standards for language and math, improved college and career readiness, increased use of data in the classroom and support for poorly performing schools. Finalists for the federal program will be announced in mid-summer, and winners in early September.