Grants and Other Financial Assistance Programs

FY2021: Title I, Part A: Improving Basic Programs Operated by Local School Districts

Fund Code: 305

Purpose:

Title I, Part A of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) provides supplemental resources to local school districts to help provide all children significant opportunity to receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education, and to close educational achievement gaps.

Title I, Part A is one of four principal programs that are available to districts through formula grants under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the current reauthorization of ESEA. The other programs are Title II, Part A; Title III, Part A; and Title IV, Part A.

Priorities:

The priorities of Title I, Part A are to:

Strengthen the core program in schools and provide academic and/or support services to low-achieving students at the preschool, elementary, middle, and high school levels;
Provide evidence-basedⁱ programs that enable participating students to achieve the learning standards of the state curriculum frameworks;
Elevate the quality of instruction by providing eligible staff with substantial opportunities for professional development; and,
Involve parents/guardians of participating public and private school children as active partners in their children's education at school through open, meaningful communication, training, and, as appropriate, inclusion in decision-making processes.

In addition to the above priorities, the Title I, Part A program supports Massachusetts' goals and strategies (listed below) for increasing student achievement by expanding school districts' capacity to support and educate students with the greatest needs.

State Goal, Core Strategies, ESSA Priorities, and Our Way Forward in Massachusetts initiatives

The goal of Massachusetts' public K-12 education system is to prepare all students for success after high school. Our five core strategies to accelerate the pace of school improvement are:

Strengthening standards, curriculum, instruction, and assessment
Promoting educator development
Supporting social-emotional learning, health, and safety
Turning around the state's lowest performing districts and schools
Enhancing resource allocation and data use

Massachusetts has identified four priority focus areas under its plan for implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act:

Early grades literacy
Middle grades math
High-quality college and career pathways for high school students
Supporting historically disadvantaged subgroups of students

Additionally, districts may explore the use of these funds to support the "Our Way Forward " initiatives. This includes:

Deeper Learning for All
Holistic Support and Enrichment
Innovation and Evidence-Based Practices

Eligibility:

A district is eligible to receive funds based on criteria established by the United States Department of Education (USED). Grants are awarded to local school districts after the state reviews and approves a district's grant application.

Funding Type:

Federal CFDA: 84.010A

Funding:

FY21 Fund Code 305 Title I, Parts A & D District Allocations

Funding is contingent upon availability. All dollar amounts listed are estimated/approximate and are subject to change. If more funding becomes available for allocations, it will be distributed under the same guidelines that appear in this RFP document.

Fund Use:

Funds may be used to provide academic, instructional, and support services for eligible students, professional development activities for staff, support for parent involvement activities, and the purchase of appropriate supplies and materials.

Project Duration:

Upon approval through 6/30/2021 (Year 1)*

*The period of availability for this grant award can be extended 15 months beyond Year 1 by utilizing the multi-year feature for this Funding Opportunity in EdGrants. The extended period is broken up by fiscal year, as follows: 7/1/2021 – 6/30/2022 (Year 2); 7/1/2022 – 9/30/2022 (Year 3). Note: No more than 15% of the Title I award may be carried beyond 9/30/21, without a waiver of this statutory limit.

Program Unit:

Resource Allocation Strategy and Planning

Contact:

Federal Grants

Phone Number:

(781) 338-6230

Date Due:

Monday, September 14, 2020

Required Forms:

FY21 Consolidated ESSA Application Workbook

Signature Page — Standard Contract Form (Tab 1 of Consolidated Application). Note: Please sign and date the cover page and ensure the amount matches the amount budgeted. We cannot approve any grant without a signed, properly dated and uploaded signature page. Electronic signatures cannot be accepted.
Title I Part A, Budget must be entered both on the consolidated workbook tab as well as in EdGrants in the Budget Entry formlet. The budget tab in the workbook and the EdGrants budget should match.
Budget and formal agreement for neglected and delinquent (if applicable)
Schedule A (if applicable)

Affirmation of Consultation and Agreement with Participating Private School Officials (required only for districts with private school participation)

Title I Schoolwide Program Justification, Assurances, and Waiver Request (required only for districts with new Schoolwide programs)

FY21 Federal Grant Assurances Signature Page (Page 1 only) completed and signed by the Superintendent/Executive Director. Upload a signed PDF copy of the signature page only with your district's FY21 Title I EdGrants submission. We cannot approve any federal entitlement grant without a signed, properly dated and uploaded Federal Grant Assurance signature page.

Additional Information:

Title I, Part A Quick Reference Guide on allowable and unallowable costs

How Funds are Allocated to States, Districts, and Schools

Selecting Title I Schools and Allocating Funds

Prenatal through Young Adulthood Family Engagement Framework in Massachusetts

Guidance on Private School Equitable Services under ESSA

Budget detail and description of line item information

Note: Applicants may only legally claim expenses to the grant starting from the date of final DESE approval. The start date for the grant is the date on which the district submits substantially approvable budget and information for the grant. Therefore, to expedite approval, it is essential to have district staff who can be reached in July and August to respond to questions, as needed.

Submission Instructions:

Submit the Application Submission and required grant materials in 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:

FY21CA-(LEA Code)
For example, Abington (0001) would name the file as FY21CA-0001

In EdGrants, district staff assigned the role of "Front Office User" should enter the grant budget and attach the FY21 Consolidated Application workbook along with a PDF of the Standard Contract Form/Signature Page with an original signature of the Superintendent/Executive Director, a PDF of the signed FY21 Federal Grant Assurances Signature page, a Schedule A form if it's applicable, and any other forms applicable to your districts FY21 Title I Ed Grants submission.

Note: The entire Consolidation Application Workbook must be uploaded with your Title I budget in EdGrants. This is the only place your entire FY21 Consolidated Application workbook will be uploaded. See Required Forms above for additional materials that may be required from some applicants.

For additional submission instructions, see the "Read Me First" tab of the FY21 Consolidated ESSA Application workbook.

For Guidance Documents regarding EdGrants, visit EdGrants: User Guides and Information.

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.

ⁱ ESEA encourages, and in select cases requires, states and districts to implement "evidence-based" practices, activities, strategies and interventions with demonstrated evidence of effectiveness. Evidence-based practices refer to interventions for which there is evidence of significant positive impact that can be found in published research papers, literature reviews, or ESE research briefs. Alternately, evidence-based practices can be those local practices that a district or state has previously instituted, measured, and found to be effective.

Last Updated: July 13, 2020