New York's Governor David Paterson has proposed legislation that would eliminate the charter-school cap and allow swifter takeovers of failing schools.  Plus, these along with other measures would boost New York’s chances of getting around $700 million in federal funds for education. These actions are being taken in order to try and beat the deadline for applications into the competitive Race to the Top grants.

The grants of $4.35 billion will be available to states that qualify if they move in line with President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan’s ideas. Paterson has consulted with a number of experts and administration officials and feels this legislation would increase their chances in the Race to the Top grants.

During this recession not only are individuals struggling but also the government and that includes funding education. Because of the poor economy in the state of New York payments were delayed to school districts because they didn’t have enough money at the time.

So New York is hoping that by changing a few laws they will be able to qualify for the largest Race to the Top grants which would equal up to $700 million and it would go directly to school districts and the state.

The qualifications and money from the grants will go to states that have committed to adopt rigorous education standards along with recruiting and retaining skilled teachers. And they must also agree to turn around low-performing schools.

States are suffering to come up with enough money and that is affecting schools and ultimately students. There are many changes that need to be made and hopefully those changes will improve the educations that American students are receiving.

The typical retirement saver now has as much if not more money in their account as they did before the stock market began to tank. The Vanguard Group reported that “60 percent of participants who continued to contribute and stayed invested have more money in their accounts than they had in September 2007 – before the market decline.” This means that 40 percent have lower balances but most of them are only 20 percent lower than the earlier peak value.

This is great for workers. It wasn’t long ago when most people had lost a huge chunk of their retirement savings. Now at least it’s on the mend. It appears that younger workers with smaller balances were the ones who saw their 401k bounce back the fastest.  Nine out of 10 investors under 25 saw their balance the same if not higher than two years ago. While eight in ten from mid-20s to mid-30s had recovered to their 2007 level. But, just over half of 50s and 60s have recovered or exceeded their preceding balances.

Recovery in some 401ks was based on a number of factors. It depends on whether individuals continued to put money into their account and their company continued to match it. “Our evidence shows that ongoing contributions plus improvement over time in the capital markets may restore many more of these individuals to their pre-October 2007 wealth levels, perhaps more rapidly than previously anticipated” remarked Stephen P. Utkus the head of Vanguard Group Inc. 

This recovery has affected millions of workers saving for retirement. Now they are back on track for retirement. Vanguard is not alone in this finding. Fidelity Investments released a report that showed that as of September 30 the median one-year rate of return was a positive .4 percent for investors. The assessment included more than 11 million individuals with a 401(k).

It’s a scary economy out there and many baby boomers were about to retire but the economy and the loss in their 401ks have forced them to continue working. It’s great that many people are starting to see their retirement go back to the 2007 level but half are still thousands below their peak. So they keep working but this also causes problems because baby boomers are hanging onto their jobs and ultimately their higher salaries which is keeping “Generation X” from advancing and “Generation Y” from obtaining a secure job in the work force.

The problem is that most workers retire around the age of 65 and they have limited savings. Nowadays, retirees are living to advanced ages and many don’t have enough to support themselves in their old age. So they are being forced to work and save longer in order to try and provide for themselves later down the road. But fortunately the market and 401(k) funds are recovering.

There was hardly any drop in the unemployment rate or job losses in November. This gives investors a hope that the economy is recovering. In October the rate was 10.2 percent in October and only 10 percent in November. This is the fewest number of jobs cut since the recession began.

In two years alone 7.2 million jobs were lost. But the market has turned a corner. There was also an increase in the average work week and earnings. The Labor Department reported that 159,000 fewer jobs were lost in September and October than first reported.

The problem is that even though the economy is growing we also need jobs being created. Even though we are making progress don't get too excited yet. This growth could be temporary. And job creation is not expected to rapidly create 15.4 million jobs for the unemployed along with the 11.5 million underemployed workers. The economy is still weak but these baby steps are the way to recovery.

"We've still got a long way to go, but the good news in this report provides important positive momentum" said Carl Riccadonna senior economist for the U.S. Deutsche Bank. As long as we have increases in work hours and fewer job losses that means there is more income. Average weekly earnings even jumped by $4.08 to $622.17 he said.

The head of the president's Council of Economic Advisers Christina Romer reported that "I do think it is a hopeful sign. We have seen the economic recovery in the sense of GDP growing again, we have seen stabilization in our financial markets. I think this could be a sign that it's finally getting to the job market."

There is light at the end of the tunnel. Eventually, the economy will get back on its feet. Until then just keep trying to stay out of debt and cut your expenses in order to make ends meet. The economy seems to be stabilizing and it will take time but it will get back to normal.