Small part of grant headed for county.

Byline: SUSAN PALMER The Register-Guard

More than $48 million in federal money is headed to Oregon to help children improve their reading, but very little of that money is expected to end up in Lane County.

The U.S. Department of Education announced earlier this month that Oregon will receive $48.4 million in grant funds to support reading instruction programs over the next six years.

Local school officials said Tuesday, however, that it appears only two schools - Westmoreland Elementary in Eugene and Guy Lee Elementary in Springfield - will be eligible to compete for some of the money next spring because it's earmarked for schools with low reading scores and high poverty rates.

Oregon is one of 15 states slated to receive a Reading First grant, which is part of President Bush's No Child Left Behind legislation, passed by Congress in January.

Oregon's first-year grant will be $7.4 million.

Seventy-eight schools in 20 Oregon school districts will qualify for the federal help, most of them in Portland and Salem.

To get the money, individual schools will have to apply in a competitive grant process, state Department of Education spokeswoman Julie Anderson said.

To be eligible, a school must have 21 percent - or at least 15 third-graders - reading below their grade level, and have 50 percent of its students living in poverty, which is measured by the number of children who are eligible for free or reduced-cost lunches.

Most elementary schools in Lane County have reading test scores above the state average.

The principals at Westmoreland and Guy Lee said their schools' eligibility for the federal money is a bit of a fluke.

Each school houses a regional learning center for children with learning or cognitive disabilities and those children aren't included in the statewide reading assessments but are included in the federal guidelines for grant eligibility.

According to federal statistics, 39 percent of Westmoreland's third-graders are reading below their grade level and 77 percent qualify for free or reduced cost lunches.

The Oregon Statewide Assessment reading tests indicate, however, that only 4 percent of Westmoreland's third-graders failed to meet state reading goals this year.

Westmoreland Principal Kevin Boling said the federal formula includes students with learning disabilities and immigrant students just beginning to learn English, who also are excluded in the statewide assessment numbers.

The same is true at Guy Lee, Principal Jim Fanning said. Federal statistics for the Springfield school show 40 percent of its third-grade students are deficient in reading skills while the state's numbers show the school is under 21 percent, he said.

Both principals are considering applying for the grant money but said it's unclear whether it can be used for students with special needs or must be spent on schoolwide programs.

Boling noted that Westmoreland was recognized as one of eight Title I Programs of Merit in 1999, for its success in reading and math instruction. "The discrepancy is with children who have really unusual needs," he said.

"I would like to access the money for programs that work for them."

Most Eugene schools are already immersed in reading improvement projects, said Tom Henry, district assistant superintendent for instruction. "Our schools have school improvement plans and they review their data, then they set goals based on the data," he said.

At Awbrey Park Elementary School, for example, a $53,000 state grant that paid for new curriculum and teacher training boosted student reading scores, Principal Laurie Moses said.

The school cut the number of third-grade students not meeting reading expectations from 18 percent in 2001 to 9 percent in 2002, Moses said.

And fifth-graders not meeting expectations went from 23 percent to 8 percent during that time, she said.

In addition, special education students were grouped with regular students for reading instruction, with their teachers helping the regular teachers, Moses said.

While the improvements among the special education students are still being assessed, the anecdotal evidence is good, she said, adding that, "We're seeing higher self-esteem from special ed kids and more of a willingness to speak up in class."