Dive Summary: 

• The competition aims to lessen the disparity in quality education and instigate reform by awarding up to $400 million in grants to qualifying districts across the country.
• To participate in the competition, districts must implement systems to evaluate teachers, principals and superintendents.  
• Although Race to the Top has prompted states and districts to pursue pro-reform education policies, commentators note that the amount of money offered may not be large enough to evoke a meaningful response from under-performing schools. 

From the Article:

Hoping to build on state-level reforms aimed at closing the education achievement gap, the Education Department opened its Race to the Top competition to school districts on Sunday, inviting the poorest districts across the country to vie for almost $400 million in grants. . . .