Richmond County Schools will have to submit a plan to the state to get a share of “Race to the Top” education funding awarded by the federal government this week.

North Carolina joins eight other states and Washington, D.C. in getting in on the second round of the coveted competitive grants, after being left on the outside when Delaware and Tennessee took home the first round.

Board of Education Chairman Kenneth Goodman pointed out these funds could “soften the blow” of the loss of stimulus funds next year.

“It’s exciting to know that our state will receive the Race to the Top funding, especially in light of the current economic situation across our state,” RCS Superintendent Dr. George Norris said Thursday. “It is however important to remember that the entire process is still in the initial stages. Within the coming months, we can expect to receive more information about the funding from state leaders along with specific details on how it will impact our school district and state.”

In a press release, Gov. Bev Perdue explained the up to $400 million in grants will fund her Career and College: Ready, Set, Go! program that has three major components.

They are recruiting and retaining quality teachers and administrators, implementing a comprehensive turnaround program for low-performing schools and providing 21st Century technology to assess students’ needs.

“North Carolina’s children today are one step closer to being guaranteed the best public education possible – something every child deserves,” Perdue said in the release. “This grant will give us the resources to more aggressively implement our plan to ensure that all of our children graduate ready for a career, college or technical training.”

About half of the award, once an exact figure is known, will stay at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI), according to DPI Spokeswoman Vanessa Jeter. The money will be used to overhaul the state’s student assessments, recruit and develop teachers and develop plans for low-performing schools to improve.

She explained Thursday morning school systems, or consortiums of school systems, will have to submit “scope of work plans” to attain a share of the remainder of the funds.

“Basically, your looking at seven indicators of the school district, or consortium of school districts, to ensure it is creating a work plan to use these dollars in keeping with the intention of the state in its ‘Race to the Top’ application,” she said.

She said the scope of work plan is “quite extensive.”

“Essentially, it enables us to keep track of some of the work that is underway with accountability curriculum reform,” Jeter said.

She also explained more details will be known soon, but for now it is not a slam dunk for any school system to get the funding.

“It’s possible they may not all apply,” Jeter said. “We’re assuming they will, but it’s not a requirement. We also expect to receive more guidance from Washington on the amount. We know right now that we will get up to $400 million, but we don’t know the exact figure.”

Staff Writer Philip D. Brown can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 32, or by e-mail at pbrown@yourdailyjournal.com.