The U.S. Department of Education has posted a list of 36 states that have signaled they plan to apply for a $4 billion Race to the Top grant in Round 1.

To figure out how many peer reviewers they need, the Department apparently asked states to send them a letter if they intend to apply in Round 1. This doesn’t mean these states will apply, nor does it mean states that aren’t on this list won’t necessarily apply, but it certainly is a good indication.

Round 1 applications are due January 19; Round 2 will be due June 1.

Most interesting to me are the states that are not on the list, and have not signaled they intend to apply. They are: Alaska, Maine, Maryland, , Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, and Washington.

(UPDATE 2: A Michigan official just contacted me to say the state has every intention to apply in Round 1; they just ran into technical difficulties in submitting the letter of intent online. Michigan policymakers are working furiously to change their laws to better position the state in the competition.)

Any surprises on the list of those not planning to apply?

UPDATE: To answer that question, Andy Smarick over at Flypaper has listed his surprises: DC, Rhode Island, Texas, and North Carolina.