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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The State Office of Education is working on compliance with federal guidelines and trying to avoid losing nearly $53 million in government funding.
Utah ranks eighth from the bottom among 31 states reviewed for compliance with the No Child Left Behind law, according to state education figures and a federal audit cited by the Deseret Morning News in a copyright story Saturday.
According to the audit, the state is coming up short on dozens of rules under the federal law, which was challenged by the state Legislature.
Ray Timothy, associate state superintendent, said the state is remedying the problems and won't jeopardize federal funding.
"We knew we were going to take our lumps. We knew we were not compliant," Timothy said. "Most of it had to do with what I consider insufficient resources."
A federal team monitored the Utah State Office of Education the week of Dec. 12. The audit found Utah to be lacking in several areas, especially helping struggling children and those in low-income neighborhoods.
Michael Clara, a community advocate for low-income and ethnic minority children who studied achievement gaps with a group appointed by the governor last year, said the results weren't a surprise.
"It's the stuff that advocates have been complaining about since the inception of No Child Left Behind," Clara said. "I think it speaks to the attitude of administrators in Utah. It's always about their reputation, and it's not about our children. Hopefully this audit will help them to re-examine their motives and look at the education of low-income and ethnic minority children."
The audit found several examples of how the state isn't meeting the federal standards. Among the findings:
--The state's report card does not contain highly qualified teacher information or a list of districts and schools that have been identified as needing improvement.
--The state is allowing schools to appeal missing the mark on tests based on drastic changes in student populations "not a substantive reason" for an appeal, the audit states.
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Information from: Deseret Morning News, http://www.deseretnews.com
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
