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Grants and Other Financial Assistance Programs: FY2018

Perkins Postsecondary Allocation Grant 2017-2018
Fund Code: 401

Purpose:	The mission of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is to strengthen the Commonwealth's public education system so that every student is prepared to succeed in postsecondary education, compete in the global economy, and understand the rights and responsibilities of American citizens, and in so doing, to close all proficiency gaps. The five key levers that DESE has identified for increasing student performance statewide include: preparing students for college and career; strengthening curriculum and instruction; strengthening educator effectiveness; supporting data use to improve policy decisions and student achievement; and turning around our lowest performing schools. The Perkins grant program is intended to support all five (where applicable) by continuously improving career/vocational technical education in Massachusetts. The purpose of this federal grant is to assist public two-year colleges with programs that meet the definition of career and technical education as contained in the Carl D. Perkins Career & Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006 P.L.109-270 (Perkins IV).
Priorities:	The priority is to improve career & technical education program outcomes on the Perkins IV core indicators of performance set forth in Perkins IV. Note: A minimum of 20% of the allocation funds must be used for secondary-postsecondary linkage activities and services. Special Conditions for Receipt of Perkins Funds for Postsecondary Institution in FY 18: The Commonwealth has received notification from the United States Department of Education that its Perkins funded programming has failed to meet 90% of the performance threshold for the following Core Indicators for Postsecondary Education for the past three (3) years: 5P1 Nontraditional Participation 5P2 Nontraditional Completion As a result of this failure to meet Performance standards, the Department is requiring Perkins Postsecondary recipients that did not meet the last three consecutive years of 5P1 and/or 5P2 Core Performance Indicators, are required to adhere to the following conditions to qualify for funding: Specify the categories of students for which there were identifiable disparities or gaps in performance compared to all students or any other categories of students based on your Perkins Core Indicator Data Reports. Identify action steps the postsecondary institution will take to address the failure to meet the 90% performance threshold for all students and how it will address identifiable gaps in performance among categories of students. Provide a timeline with specific action steps about how this year's Perkins funding will be used to increase Nontraditional Participation and/or Nontraditional Completion. Identify the individual(s) or staff responsible in your institution to oversee the successful and timely completion of each action step. This individual(s) or staff will work in collaboration with DESE staff and the DESE Equity Contractor(s). Target funding in this year's grant towards increasing Nontraditional Participation and/or Nontraditional Completion. Review and update any previously submitted improvement plans for 5P1 Nontraditional Participation and/or 5P2 Nontraditional Completion. Participate in any professional development activities provided by the Department to address 5P1 Nontraditional Participation and/or 5P2 Nontraditional Completion. Reports are required on your institution's progress towards improving performance under these two performance categories. Quarterly reports are due on October 20, 2017, January 19, 2018, and April 20, 2018. Please send reports to Gary Gomes.
Eligibility:	Information on eligibility is contained in the Massachusetts Perkins IV Manual.
Funding Type:	Federal CFDA 84.048
Funding:	Public two-year colleges will receive notice from the Office for Career/Vocational Technical Education of their postsecondary allocations when they are computed. Perkins IV is the funding source. Funding is contingent upon availability. All dollar amounts listed are estimated/approximate and are subject to change. If more funding is to become available it will be distributed under the same guideline as listed in the initial RFP document.
Fund Use:	Perkins IV allocation funds must be used in accordance with Perkins IV and the Massachusetts Perkins IV Manual. Funds shall supplement and shall not supplant non-Federal funds.
Project Duration:	9/1/2017-8/31/2018
Program Unit:	Office for College, Career and Technical Education
Contact:	Margie Roberts
Phone Number:	(781) 338-3951
Date Due:	Wednesday, August 30, 2017 A rolling submission period has been established for submission of the Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants. In order to be reasonably assured that funds will be available by the beginning of the college/school year, the Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants should be submitted by Wednesday, August 30, 2017. Please be advised that an internal deadline of December 1, 2017 has been established for submission and Department approval of all Perkins grant materials under this Request for Proposals. Any extensions past this deadline must be requested and approved by the Associate Commissioner of the Office for College, Career and Technical Education.
Required Forms:	Part I - General - Program Unit Signature Page - (Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants) Part II - FY18 New Budget Template (This is a budget template for the applicant to utilize while working through their final budget request in order to prepare for entering it into EdGrants. Please feel free to use this template when preparing for Application Submission. This Is Not the Budget. The actual final budget the applicant is requesting will be entered directly into EdGrants as part of the application submission process.) Part III - Required Program Information-Notes Table
Additional Information:	Budget Detail - Description of Line Item Information Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) Grants for Schools: Getting Them and Using Them, A Procedural Manual Massachusetts Perkins IV Manual and Perkins Act Standard Contract Forms and Applications for Program Grants submitted or approved after September 1, 2017 can legally claim expenses to the grant only from the date of final Department approval.
Submission Instructions:	Submit all required grant materials through EdGrants In EdGrants, districts are required to create and name the project. Please use the following naming convention for your "Applicant Project Name" in EdGrants: FY18 401 Perkins Applicant Name All required forms should be uploaded / attached in the Attachments List formlet of the Application Submission. This includes a signed / scanned PDF of Part I / Coversheet with Superintendent's signature and Schedule A form, if applicable to your district. The final budget the applicant is requesting will be entered directly into EdGrants as part of the application submission process. For Guidance Documents regarding EdGrants click here. Please note: It is up to the district to determine who they want to add as EdGrants Front Office users in order to submit grant application as well as payment request information. Please review the EdGrants: User Security Controls to make informed decisions regarding assigning your district level users.