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NCLB > School Improvement Grants

School Improvement Grants Eligibility List

Under federal guidelines, the Department ranks the three-year average combined proficiency in reading and math and then identifies schools that have low proficiency and a lower-than-average growth in proficiency over the three years. Schools can end up on the list in one of two tiers:

Tier 1 is for Title I schools – which receive funding based on the size of their population of economically disadvantaged students – that are not making progress according to the standards of the No Child Left Behind Act.

Tier 2 is for high schools that are eligible for Title I funds, but whose districts use those funds in other schools.

Many Maine schools are not eligible to be in either category because their schools are not eligible for Title I funds. A school could have lower test scores than one of the 10, but have a higher rate of growth in the past three years and not make the list.

2010-11 School Improvement Grants Eligible Schools


Tier 1

  • East End Community School, Portland
  • Oak Hill High School, Wales, RSU 4
  • Fort Kent Community High School, MSAD 27
  • Ellsworth High School, RSU 24
  • Southern Aroostook CSD School, Dyer Brook

Tier 2

  • Hodgdon High School, RSU 70
  • Madison Area Memorial High School, RSU 59
  • Nokomis Regional High School, Newport, RSU 19
  • Georges Valley High School, Thomaston, RSU 13
  • Lawrence High School, Fairfield, RSU

Funds available

The schools are eligible to apply for a share of approximately $4 million available in federal funds, down from the $13 million available last year, when there was an infusion of funds under the federal Recovery Act. Six of the 10 schools named last year applied for and received funds, with approximately $3 million carried over to this year. Because of the reduced funding this year, it is likely that not all schools will receive funding. By federal law, the state must first provide funds to the Tier 1 schools that apply for them.

School Improvement Models

Schools on the list are eligible to apply for school improvement grants which are spread over a three-year period. Under federal guidelines, if they apply for and receive the funds, they must agree to pursue a plan for turning around the school using one of four models.

The Transformation Model has been the most common choice for Maine schools.

  • Turnaround: Replace the principal, screen existing school staff, and rehire no more than half the teachers; adopt a new governance structure; and improve the school through curriculum reform, professional development, extending learning time, and other strategies.
  • Restart: Convert a school or close it and re-open it as a charter school or under an education management organization.
  • School Closure: Close the school and send the students to higher-achieving schools in the district.
  • Transformation: Replace the principal and improve the school through comprehensive curriculum reform, professional development, extending learning time, and other strategies.