Policy & Funding | News

3 States Land SIG Continuation Awards for Low-Performing Schools

• By David Nagel
• 08/27/13

The United States Department of Education has awarded three states with $5.2 million in continuation grants under the School Improvement Grants (SIG) program.

The SIG program provides funding to state agencies that then channel the funds, through a competitive process, to districts that demonstrate the need, the will, and ability to raise the achievement level of students in the poorest-performing schools in their states.

The three states to receive the latest continuation awards are New Hampshire ($1.4 million), Hawaii ($1.7 million), and Idaho ($2.1 million). To date, 32 other states have already received such continuation awards, ranging in size from $1.1 million for Wyoming to $61.8 million for California.

"When schools fail, our children and our neighborhoods suffer," said Arne Duncan, U.S. secretary of education, in a statement released to coincide with the awards. "Turning around our lowest-performing schools is hard work but it's our responsibility. We owe it to our children, their families and the broader community. These School Improvement Grants are helping some of the lowest-achieving schools provide a better education for students who need it the most."

ED added that 15 states have also recently received new awards (as opposed to continuation awards) to hold new competitions among their districts, including Colorado ($5.2 million), Georgia ($17.2 million), Illinois ($22.2 million), Indiana ($9.2 million), Kansas ($4 million), Louisiana ($9.6 million), Maine ($1.7 million), Massachusetts ($7.2 million), Missouri ($7.7 million), Nebraska ($2.6 million), Nevada ($3.8 million), New York ($37.6 million), North Carolina ($14.3 million), and Wisconsin ($8.1 million). The District of Columbia also received a $1.5 million SIG grant.

According to information released by ED today, more than 1,500 "of the country's lowest-performing schools" have received up to $2 million in awards through the SIG program under the current administration.

About the Author

David Nagel is editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Technology Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal and STEAM Universe. A 25-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art and business publications.

He can be reached at dnagel@1105media.com. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at or follow him on Twitter at @THEJournalDave (K-12) or @CampusTechDave (higher education).