Officials: Title I school aid isn’t enough

Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2004 | 11:15 a.m.

Nevada will receive $6.7 million in extra education funds for its poorest students thanks to a new federal formula for calculating aid, but the increase won't provide enough money for the Clark County School District to help every school that qualifies, officials said.

Last year 121 schools -- 44 percent of the district -- met the federal criteria for Title I aid, which is reserved for campuses with large populations of students from low-income families. But the district only used the federal dollars at less than half of the campuses.

"It doesn't do much good if we spread the dollars too thin," said Mark Lange, director of Title I compliance for the district. "We could give every school a little bit but it wouldn't be effective in the long run."

Nevada is expected to receive $64.3 million this year, a $6.7 million increase over previous projections, because the federal government adjusted regulations to help fast-growing areas.

Overall, Nevada could see an increase of 21 percent in Title I funds.

Clark County received $37.38 million in Title I dollars last year. The amount of this year's allocation wasn't yet known, but Lange said he expected the district's share to top $40 million.

With the extra federal dollars Clark County should be able to add several more schools to its Title I list, Lange said.

"We've never been able to serve all of the eligible schools but at least we're closing the gap," Lange said.

The money must be spent on remedial education programs and supplemental materials not already offered by the district. Districtwide, 85 percent of Title I money goes toward teacher salaries, Lange said.

A district-wide goal has been to add more full-day kindergarten programs to the Title I schools. An influx of Title I money would help, said Agustin Orci, deputy superintendent of curriculum for the district.

The district currently has just a handful of full-day kindergarten classrooms and all have lengthy waiting lists.

"It's expensive but it's worth it," Orci said. "We know the earlier we're able to give students intensive instruction the better off they are later on. Full-day kindergarten is a critical building block that truly prepares children for first grade and beyond."

Nevada will be helped by a change in federal law, which was sponsored by Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev. The amendment requires the Education Department to use only the latest available census figures when determining aid to schools in high-poverty areas.

Fast-growing states complained that the way the federal government determined support hurt them because the federal government was using old numbers -- last year the Education Department used 1997 population numbers.

Now, the government will use the latest population numbers available each year.

The change means states such as Nevada and Arizona will see significant increases in federal aid while states that have had a decline in poor populations will lose funding. Nevada's funding is expected to increase by 21 percent. Massachusetts -- facing one of the steepest percentage cuts -- could lose $27 million, or 10 percent.

The 2000 census data -- the most recent available -- is still four years behind but it's a vast improvement over the prior formula which used 1997 population figures, said Kathy St. Clair, the Nevada Education Department's consultant on the federal reform law.

"Thanks to (Ensign) the federal government is going to try much harder to direct the money to where poorer children actually are, not where they were," St. Clair said. "We're getting some of Massachusetts' money."

The nation's fastest growing -- and sixth largest -- school district, Clark County's student enrollment is currently 268,357 -- an increase of 29 percent since 1997.

The federal government uses the number of students qualifying for free and reduced-price meals to determine which schools get Title I money.

To qualify, a school must be above its school district's average number of students who qualify for the free and reduced-price meals.

In Clark County for the 2002-03 academic year, the latest figure available, the district average was 37.12 percent.

Rather than parcel out smaller amounts to 121 schools the district decided to use the federal money only at the 52 schools with the highest percentage of qualifying students -- those with at least 64.7 percent of their students qualifying for free and reduced-price meals.

Last year J.T. McWilliams Elementary School -- with 63.2 percent of its students on free and reduced-price meals -- just missed the cut for federal aid. The campus, north of U.S. 95 between Jones and Decatur, topped the district's waiting list.

When told her school could be designated a Title I campus and receive tens of thousands of dollars in extra funding next year, Principal Phyllis Meckley's enthusiasm was tinged with wariness.

"It's a double-edged sword," Meckley said. "Extra funding is always of value but the extra federal regulations that come with it aren't always of value. But if it benefits our students, that's the bottom line. We'll jump through the hoops."

Most of the "hoops" are attached to the federal No Child Left Behind Act, now in its second year. The federal education reform act calls for greater accountability at the nation's public schools with sanctions for those that fail to show yearly progress. The toughest hurdles are set for Title I schools.

Title I campuses that fail to show "adequate yearly progress" on standardized tests for at least two consecutive years must offer students transfers to more successful schools at the district's expense. The federal law requires districts to set aside 20 percent of its total Title I funding to cover the school choice option.

If McWilliams becomes a Title I school and receives the federal money its teachers will have until August to show that they meet the federal definition of "highly qualified," which means teachers will have to either pass a national exam or complete graduate-level courses. Teachers at non-Title I campuses have until the end of the 2005-06 academic year to meet the same standard.

In addition to her school receiving more money, Meckley and her teaching staff could be in for raises.

The Clark County Association of School Administrators voted last summer to reclassify its job descriptions based on complexity. Principals and other administrators working in Title I schools may be eligible for increased pay. The state Legislature also voted last summer to offer teachers at Title I schools retirement credits for every five years worked.

"Becoming a Title I school is a big step philosophically and financially," St. Clair said. "I can understand why some principals would be hesitant to cross that bridge, but ultimately you have to believe it's going to mean more opportunities for the students."