Public Television and the Race To The Top -- Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) Program
Public Television and the Race To The Top -- Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) Program
On May 25, 2011, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius announced that the Administration plans to use approximately $500 million of the $700 million appropriated in fiscal year 2011 for Race to the Top for a major competition in support of bold and comprehensive state plans for raising the quality of early learning programs.
This new competition, the Race To The Top-Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC), will be jointly administered by the U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services. The competition will call for states to take a comprehensive approach to developing integrated, high-quality early learning systems, which in turn will help ensure that more children, especially high-need children, enter school ready and able to succeed.
While the official Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA), which will include more detailed information about the requirements to apply, will not be released until later this summer, we anticipate that this program could bring opportunities for stations to partner with states to be part of a comprehensive early learning initiative. For instance:
- Statutory regulations require the program to target and support low-income and disadvantaged children in each age group of infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers who are enrolled in high-quality early learning programs. Public television has a proven track record of helping the most disadvantaged students succeed by intervening before kindergarten.
- The U.S. Department of Education expressed a desire to ensure families are involved in this initiative. Public television stations can help states engage parents in their child's learning while also providing community-wide outreach and awareness-raising through broadcast and internet content.
- The U.S. Department of Education suggested that professional development for the early learning workforce could be a criterion for the application process. Public television already provides critical resources to teachers and caregivers to enhance children's learning and could be a valuable asset in constructing professional development components.
While public broadcasters could be excellent partners to states in the application for and implementation of RTT-ELC grants, the U.S. Department of Education expects that the turnaround time for the application process will only be six to eight weeks. Stations should not wait until the application is released to start building relationships with state officials and begin brainstorming opportunities to capitalize on this opportunity.
Starting now, stations can begin to introduce themselves to and work with state leaders to cement relationships and prepare for the application process. Steps that can be taken include:
- Contact your state educational agency and find out if they plan to apply.
- Identify who is in charge of that process and request a meeting, either in person or over the phone.
- Brainstorm several specific ideas on how your station could help the state implement a successful early learning initiative. Be specific -- identify possible costs associated and the number of schools and communities you can help them reach. Include information on the proven impact of public television's early education content and resources.
- Begin to market that idea with state leaders who are overseeing this process.
Remember that the Grant Center can help you at every step of the way. We can help you craft strong proposals to state leaders and provide the data to support them. Email grantcenter@apts.org with any questions.
To read more about the Race To The Top - Early Learning Challenge Program, visit its website.
