It’s always better to be early than late, but USED surprised more than a few folks today by accidentally releasing the list of the 49 Investing in Innovation (i3) fund winners. The winners have the highest scores in each category (scale up, validation, development), but still have to secure their 20% funding match and pass through the final approvals. See EdWeek’s Politics K-12 blog for ongoing coverage.
It’ll take awhile to sift through all the data/applications and scores, but there are quite a few surprises to say the least. Stay tuned to USED’s website for more information on the applicants, their scores, and how implementation will roll out (applicant data portal, i3 website).
A number of applicants proposed scaling up turnaround models and transitioning turnaround efforts into sustainable schools, and hopefully, some of these projects will be funded privately and the work will get done without i3 funding.
Congratulations to the 49 highest scorers, and now that all these great ideas are out there, let’s hope that innovation doesn’t stop with just the winners.
THE LISTS (courtesy of EdWeek):
The four scale-up winners are: Teach for America, Ohio State University, KIPP Foundation, and the Success for All Foundation.
The validation winners are: Children’s Literacy Initiative; The Curators of the University of Missouri – eMINTS National Center, Academic Affairs; George Mason University; ASSET (Achieving Student Success through Excellence in Teaching); Smithsonian Institution – National Science Resources Center, LASER; New Schools for New Orleans; The New Teacher Project; School District No. 1 of the City and County of Denver; Parents as Teachers National Center; President and Fellows of Harvard College Graduate School of Education; WestEd Teacher Professional Development Program; Johns Hopkins University – Center for Social Organization of Schools; Utah State University – Center for Persons with Disabilities; Council for Opportunity in Education; Niswonger Foundation.
The development winners are: Advancement Through Opportunity and Knowledge; Bellevue School District; AppleTree Institute for Education Innovation; Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools; American Federal of Teachers Educational Foundation; Bay State Reading Institute; Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee; Beaverton School District 48J; Board of Education of the City of New York Office of School of One; Boston Plan for Excellence in the Public Schools Foundation; Plymouth Public Schools; Los Angeles Unified School District; The Studio in a School Association, Inc.; Take Stock in Children; Saint Vrain Valley School District Priority Schools; The Achievement Network; Montgomery County (Md.) Public Schools; Search Institute; National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform; School Board of Miami-Dade County, Fla.; Iredell-Statesville-Schools; California Education Round Table Intersegmental Coordinating Committee; New York City Department of Education; and the Jefferson County Board of Education.
Strategy • Implementation • Transformation 
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