In late April, the Coalition for Student Achievement released Smart Options: Investing the Recovery Funds for Student Success (see here).This document, developed following a convening of more than 30 K-12 national education leaders, including state and district superintendents, was sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation. The document provides states and districts with five "big ideas" for investing one-time federal recovery funds that can lay "the groundwork for real student improvement for decades to come."
Our chart, below, compares the five recommendations from Smart Options to policies proposed in the House-passed version of House Bill (HB) 1, which incorporates billions in federal stimulus dollars. Using the Smart Options recommendations as a benchmark, we rate the legislative language in HB 1.
