TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

One more Kern County school district has signed on with the state in the federal Race to the Top, a competitive grant that rewards states and districts for innovative, reforming education.

Robert Aguilar, superintendent of Delano Union School District, informed us that his district has been added to the state list. That brings county participation to eight districts and schools, out of 47 districts countywide.

Not a single Bakersfield district decided to join the competition that has California vying for up to $700 million, according to the California Department of Education.

"I think it's a good opportunity," Aguilar said. "We're all working to make sure our kids are getting the best opportunity to achieve."

On Friday, state superintendent Jack O'Connell and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed California's official application to enter the Race to the Top. Tuesday is the deadline for states.

"We are united in signing an application that may qualify California for hundreds of millions of dollars designed to set the state on a bold, new path toward education reform," O'Connell said in a statement Friday.

As of Friday, 804 school districts, charter schools and county offices of education signed a memorandum of understanding with California, or roughly 47 percent of all education state agencies. The state says this represents about 58 percent of all state students.

In comparison, only 17 percent of Kern education agencies are participating. Those not participating say the Race has too many strings attached and a lot of "unanswered questions."

Among the most troubling aspects for districts regarding the Race include changes in academic standards, and using test data to evaluate teachers.

Those who decided to sign up say the Race is an opportunity to increase student achievement throughout the state.

Others in Kern who already joined: Delano Joint Union High, Kernville Union, Lamont, Wasco Union Elementary, Maricopa Unified, and Maricopa Unified school districts and Ridgecrest Charter School.

Recently we wrote about Fruitvale School District receiving a grant from Chevron for a program aimed at producing future engineers. Fruitvale Junior High will be the first junior high in Bakersfield to run the Gateway to Technology Program.

It's worth mentioning, however, that Tehachapi High School has been running an engineering program since 2004 called Tehachapi High Engineering and Manufacturing Academy.

It is one of the school's "signature practices" that garnered the high school the California Distinguished School award last year, said Cary Johnson, Tehachapi High principal, in an e-mail. The award is the state's highest honor for schools.

The Tehachapi program "accommodates those students who want to pursue and explore the fields of engineering and manufacturing through project-oriented curriculum that covers the process of communication and innovations of science from principles and research to development to production," according to the program description.

In Bakersfield, Centennial High School will be the feeder school for the engineering program at Fruitvale scheduled to start next school year.

The Kern High School District, in a special meeting Tuesday, will discuss the appointment of a new dean of students at Stockdale High School, and continue labor negotiations.

Both topics will be considered in a closed session, which is not open to the public.

For more education news, visit The Californian's education blog, The Grade, at www.bakersfield.com/blogs.