Title I Funding

Under the stimulus act, schools will receive additional funding under the Title I program supporting the education of low-income students. Some $5 billion was released to the states in March 2009, and a similar amount will be distributed at a future date.

The department has cautioned that because the Title I recovery funds represent a large infusion of funding that will probably not be available beyond Sept. 30, 2011, local school leaders “should focus these funds on short-term investments with the potential for long-term benefits, rather than make ongoing commitments that they might not be able to sustain once recovery funds are expended.”

The department provides a few examples of how this funding could be used to support technology-related projects:

• Providing new opportunities for secondary school students in low-income schools to use “high-quality, online courseware as supplemental learning materials for meeting mathematics and science requirements”;
• Using longitudinal data systems to drive continuous improvement efforts focused on improving achievement in Title I schools;
• Providing professional development to teachers serving Title I students on the use of data to improve their students’ instruction.

Click here to access the federal government’s preliminary estimate of what your local school district will receive under this program.