THE STARK REALITIES of the nation's economic crisis are no less pressing in our schools. Budgets are tight, projections for next year are grim, and many districts are choosing between cutting teachers, cutting programs and services, closing schools, or all three.
Enter President Obama's stimulus bill - formally known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act - which will provide more than $1.4 billion for K-12 education in Massachusetts over the next two years.
It may be tempting to see the stimulus funds as a well-timed panacea to help us get through the current economic downturn. But as a state, we must think beyond the next several years and use as much of the funding as possible to strategically invest in initiatives that will serve our students not just now but for years to come.
This will be no easy task. Many districts are facing layoffs, cuts, and increased student fees. District leaders are anxious for the federal funds to flow to avoid painful cuts now. But communities that use all of their federal stimulus dollars to plug existing holes today - for instance, by rehiring recently laid-off teachers - will be faced with the same fiscal dilemma in two years when this one-time stimulus funding disappears. Instead, districts should aim to reserve some of their stimulus funding for investments that will help them build capacity and ultimately save money in the future.
Federal officials are asking for evidence that we have spent this money both quickly and wisely, and that we have used it both to fill gaps and to invest strategically in the future of our schools. How well states meet this dual challenge will help determine how much they receive in future competitive grant opportunities, such as US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's $5 billion "Race to the Top" innovation fund.
But while the federal requirements clearly argue for careful spending, we shouldn't need federal regulations to convince us.
I am urging district leaders to use their stimulus money both for spending on immediate needs - saving jobs and programs - and for strategic investments that will pay long-term dividends. Some districts may have budget deficits that will claim the lion's share of the stimulus funding that Governor Patrick is using to meet Foundation Aid requirements. But some stimulus money is dedicated to serving low-income and special-needs students, and failure to think longer-term in how to use this funding would be a lost opportunity for the state. My staff is working closely with the Commonwealth's education leaders to develop guidance and tools that will assist districts in the hard choices they need to make in balancing short-term needs and long-term investments.
Secretary Duncan's "Race to the Top" fund is appropriately named, and reminiscent of the race that the United States participated in 47 years ago, when President John F. Kennedy committed the nation to putting a man on the moon in 10 years.
Not unlike space exploration, winning the current race to the top in public education requires mobilized resources, creative thinking, and the commitment of society as a whole. The Commonwealth's schools provide a world-class education to some of our students, but not all. We must aim the stimulus funds at innovations that strengthen teaching and learning - with a particular focus on the needs of our lowest performers, who too often are low-income and minority students.
In Massachusetts, this goal can be realized in many ways, such as accelerating the preparation of current educators to subjects in which there are currently shortages, such as math and science; targeting professional development so teachers are better equipped to meet the needs of struggling students, such as new immigrants or students with disabilities; or developing new regional strategies to deliver services like data management.
The fiscal challenges facing school districts are real, and may worsen in the months ahead. The stimulus funds Massachusetts will receive over the next two years will help blunt the economic downturn. But with vision, courage, and discipline, I am hopeful that the money also can be used to accomplish much, much more.
Mitchell D. Chester is the Massachusetts commissioner of elementary and secondary education. 
