As reported by the nine participating agencies, the U.S. Department of Education's Professional Development for Music Educators program largely achieved its goal of enhancing the skills and classroom effectiveness of elementary and secondary school music teachers. However, the majority of the schools involved did not employ an outside entity to analyze results, a task that would have brought their projects greater validity, according to Martin Bergee, professor and director of music education at the University of Kansas. The Department of Education (ED) launched the initiative in 2002, with a granting period of up to 36 months. Final reports were required from the participants to help determine which professional development programs best improve music teacher expertise and, subsequently, student performance. The ED doled out an average of $250,000 to eligible local agencies acting on behalf of a school or schools in which at least 75 percent of children were from low-income families. The hefty sum made available through the program was a head-turner.