WASHINGTON – For the third time in four years, South Carolina’s public schools are receiving millions of dollars in federal funds to help train, reward and support effective teachers and principals in high-need and hard-to-staff areas. 

The state is among 62 winners of Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) grants announced today by U.S Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.  South Carolina’s award of $47,189,299 is the fifth largest for a statewide education agency. 

 The state received an initial TIF grant of $34 million in 2006, the largest given at that time.  A second round award of $7 million went to three Palmetto State school districts in 2007. 

 The federal government’s five-year $1.2 billion TIF program attracted 96 applications from states, districts and non-profit organizations throughout the nation.  The 62 winners from 27 states include rural and urban school districts as well as non-profits and state agencies.    

 “Nothing is more important than great teaching. These grants will help schools build a culture that celebrates excellence in the classroom and helps all teachers improve their practice,” Duncan said.  The awards today total $442 million for the first two years of funding, with further allocations contingent on congressional action.

 South Carolina’s grant will build on the existing Teacher Advancement Program that’s been a pilot initiative to recruit and retain quality educators in high-need schools.  It has four components:

• Multiple career paths that give teachers a chance to advance their careers while continuing to work directly with students to increase achievement;
• Performance-based accountability, using multiple measures of student and teacher achievement in a fair and rigorous manner;
• Ongoing, applied professional development that helps teachers acquire the skills to address their needs as well as the needs of the students; and
• Performance-based compensation that can mean higher pay for teachers and principals based on student achievement measured using a value-added growth model, as well as instructional excellence as evaluated by a valid, reliable and rigorous assessment.

The state will use its new TIF funding to work with 1,703 teachers and principals, effecting 20,433 students in 42 schools within 12 school districts.  

 “Through these efforts, we’ll reach the tipping point of moving from a pilot project to a full-blown statewide model of reform,” said State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex.  “A performance-based compensation system, using value-added measures that are reliable and transparent, will ultimately affect achievement for all students.

 “This will be a reform effort that involves teachers every step of the way, starting with their voting to implement the reform and continuing with teachers being the main decision-makers about their individual developmental needs and unique needs within their classroom,” Rex said.  “It will be a reflection of the power teachers hold over their professional growth as well as their compensation.”  

 South Carolina’s federal TIF grant application earned 108 points in evaluation, the second-highest score among all winners.  The highest score went to the Texas Education Agency at 108.67, good for a $50.1 million award.