The Associated Press is reporting the U.S. Department of Education's decision to allow six states to develop their own plans when dealing with failing schools in order to comply with the No Child Left Behind Act, a key part of President Bush's education policy.

The six states, which include Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Maryland, and Ohio, presented plans to the Education Department that were tailored made to focus on individual schools' problems and direct resources to where they're needed most.

Education Secretary Margaret Spellings commented that up to 10 states will be allowed to participate in the pilot programs. Other proposals are planned to be reviewed this fall.

In an interview, Spellings commented that activities in these states will be closely monitored and will be used to shape any future reauthorizations of the No Child law.

With this new flexibility, school administrators in these 6 states and any others approved in the future will be able to better utilize various enrollment management and online learning solutions to improve their schools.

"We're trying to set the table for a strong and sensible reauthorization," Spellings said. "We're going to learn some things."