Great News for Newark and Neptune, NJ!

Whew!

The Newark and Neptune school districts — New Jersey’s only finalists in a competition for millions of dollars to bolster school improvement efforts — were denied the prize money they sought, the U.S. Department of Education said today.
The two districts were among 61 finalists from 28 states and the District of Columbia considered by the federal government in the Race to the Top competition. Roughly one quarter of those applicants won awards totaling $400 million.

Praise the Lord! This was the last thing New Jersey needed

Let's face it: Arne Duncan, the Secretary of Education who is pushing RTTT, has no idea what he is doing. He is incoherent, pushing programs like merit pay, test-based teacher evaluation, and charter school expansion that have no evidence to back them up.

His legacy in Chicago is a disaster. Why would New Jersey, arguably the highest-performing state in the nation, ever consider following the prescriptions of a man who failed so badly when he had to run a school district himself?

This is great news for New Jersey. The less we have to deal with the poorly designed "reforms" of Arne Duncan, the better. Let him live in a world of his own delusions:

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said he is "encouraged" by Newark’s progress under Superintendent Cami Anderson.
"The new teacher contract is a step in the right direction," Duncan said. "Whether Newark received a nickel or not, I’m very hopeful about the direction they’re going."

Yes, he's "hopeful." Even thought there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that the Newark contract will do a thing to help the children of Newark. Most likely, it will turn their school days into testing hell:

Gee, thanks, Mr. Duncan!