1. Does it drive results for students (improved results for students, including students in poverty, students with disabilities, and English language learners)?
2. Does it increase capacity (increase educators' long-term capacity to improve results for students)?
3. Does it avoid the funding cliff and improve productivity (avoid recurring costs that school systems are unprepared to assume when this funding ends)?
4. Does it foster continuous improvement (include approaches to measure and track implementation and results)?
5. Is it educationally appropriate (fixing a leaky roof is a necessity but other projects are judgement calls; idea is to make both school buildings and students high performing)?
6. Is it neighborhood friendly (what is the impact on the surroundings)?
7. Is it environmentally sound (energy efficiency should be a high priority for every project)?
8. What is the long-term impact (some schools need major short-term repairs just to keep functioning)?

RESOURCES
The following resources are intended to spark ideas about how districts and schools might use funds available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

• IDEA Recovery Funds, Michigan Department of Education
  
• Title I Recovery Funds, Michigan Department of Education

• ARRA Example - Rustin High School

• USDOE: Ideas from the Field on Using ARRA Funds
• USDOE: Using ARRA Funds to Drive School Reform and Improvement
  
• USDOE Publications and Resources
• Smart Options:  Investing the Recovery Funds for Student Success, Coalition for Student Achievement
  
• Learning Point Associates
  
• National Staff Development Council
  
• Wisconsin Department of Education Economic Recovery & Reinvestment  
  
• Pennsylvania Department of Education ARRA