FY2024: Adult Education and Family Literacy Services

Fund Codes: 340/345/359

Purpose:

The purpose of this competitive grant program is to establish free access for eligible undereducated adults, age 16 and older, to highly effective adult basic education services in the Central Massachusetts workforce area and/or to offer highly effective English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) services to limited English proficient adults, who have recently resettled into the United States. These services must be delivered within the Central Mass Workforce Development region. Option 1

Provide outstationing services in both the Bristol and Berkshire planning regions consistent with Public Law 113-128, Sections 201 through 243 by a Community Adult Learning Center eligible for funding in the FY24-28 funding cycle. Option 2

Priorities:

1. deliver English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) services; and
   1. assist eligible individuals to become literate and obtain the knowledge and skills necessary for employment and economic self-sufficiency;
   2. assist eligible individuals who are parents or family members to obtain the education and skills that—
      1. are necessary to become full partners in the educational development of their children, and
      2. result in sustainable improvements in the economic opportunities for their family;
   3. assist eligible individuals in attaining a secondary school credential and in the transition to postsecondary education and training, including through career pathways; and
   4. assist immigrants and other individuals who are English language learners to—
      1. improve their—
         1. (1) reading, writing, speaking and comprehension skills in English; and
         2. (2) mathematical skills;
      2. acquire an understanding of the American system of government, individual freedom, and responsible citizenship.
   
   

2. To reduce disparity in education by providing, in collaboration with WIOA partners and others, high quality AE programming that provides an inclusive and welcoming environment, rigorous curriculum and instruction, and related services responsive to and supportive of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

3. To support innovation in the development of AE services to effectively serve eligible individuals most in need of education services in the central mass local workforce development area through in-person and remote instruction and in coordination and collaboration with WIOA partner services.

4. To improve and accelerate participant outcomes, especially educational functioning level completion, high school equivalency (HSE) credential or high school diploma (ADP) attainment, and enrollment in post-secondary education or training.

Massachusetts Requirements:

1. In awarding grants or contracts for adult education and literacy activities to eligible providers, DESE must consider the 13 WIOA Considerations (Sec 231).
2. Eligible agencies awarded adult education grants must:
   1. Design, implement, and evaluate adult education services guided by the:
      1. 13 WIOA Considerations
      2. Massachusetts Policies for Effective Adult Education in Community Adult Learning Centers and Correctional Institutions
      3. Massachusetts Indicators of Program Quality
      4. WIOA Massachusetts Combined State Plan
   2. Maintain the negotiated average monthly enrollment during the program year. DESE prefers program designs that serve a minimum of 50 participants on a monthly basis during a typical academic year September through June but will consider proposals to serve fewer than 50 enrolled participants per month if the eligible agency provides sufficient justification.

Outstationing:

Proposals must demonstrate capacity to collaborate and coordinate with local area MassHire Career Centers and adult education providers to support student access to services offered by adult education programs in the local workforce area and MassHire Career Centers.

Eligibility:

Eligible agencies/organizations that have demonstrated effectiveness in providing services for which they are applying, currently (FY23) funded by DESE, are eligible to apply.

Option 1 Eligible Agency: An organization that has demonstrated effectiveness in providing adult education and literacy activities that may include:

1. a local educational agency
2. a community-based organization or faith-based organization
3. a volunteer literacy organization
4. an institution of higher education
5. a public or private nonprofit agency
6. a library
7. a public housing authority
8. a nonprofit institution not described in any of subparagraphs (1) through (7) and has the ability to provide literacy activities to eligible providers
9. a consortium or coalition of the agencies, organizations, institutions, libraries or authorities described in (1) through (8)
10. a partnership between an employer and an entity described in any of (1) through (9)

Note: As required by WIOA the applicant must demonstrate past effectiveness by submitting past performance data in serving eligible participants.

Applications that do not provide demonstrated effectiveness data in Part III will not be reviewed and scored.

Option 2 Eligible Agencies:
ACLS will fund one agency per workforce area for outstationing services. Only funded agencies in the local workforce area without outstationing services are eligible to apply.

• Berkshire Region
  Berkshire Community College
  North Adams Public Schools
  Pittsfield Public Schools

• Bristol Region
  Bristol Community College
  SER — Jobs for Progress

Funding Type:

Fund Code 340, 359: Federal CFDA 84.002

Federal grant funds must adhere to:

• UGG (2 CFR 200)
• EDGAR As Applicable
• EDGAR General Fiscal Administration 34 CFR Part 76

Fund Code 345: State Line Item 7035-0002

Funding:

Total funding for fund codes is approximately $636,000

• Option 1: up to $600,000 for ESOL services in Central Massachusetts
• Option 2: Outsationing $18,000 Bristol Region, $18,000 Berkshire region

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

Important: DESE adult education CALC awards include average monthly enrollment targets and a cost per participant. The cost per participant is the base award (i.e., excluding Outstationing and MassSTEP) divided by the monthly enrollment target. Grantees are expected to maintain or exceed, on average, their enrollment target(s) from September through May. See the FY2024-28 Massachusetts Policies for Effective Adult Education in Community Adult Learning Centers and Correctional Institutions for additional information. Grantees must Maintain the negotiated average monthly enrollment during the program year.

DESE encourages applicants to propose realistic budgets that consider the estimated regional allocation and the program's organizational capacity. Proposed expenditures must be allowable as stated in federal and state regulations, reasonable to achieve the goals of the proposal, and adhere to the budget requirements outlined in FY24-FY28 Massachusetts Policies for Effective Adult Education in Community Adult Learning Centers and Correctional Institutions.

Fund Use:

Funds must be used in accordance with FY24-FY28 Massachusetts Policies for Effective Adult Education in Community Adult Learning Centers and Correctional Institutions to provide adult education to eligible students; eligible students are:

• are at least 16 years of age;
• are not enrolled or required to be enrolled in secondary school under state law; and
• do not have a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent and have not achieved an equivalent level of education; or are basic skills deficient; or are English language learners.

Students under 18 must provide a letter of withdrawal from the local school district in order to enroll in the program. Students who are home schooled must provide a letter from the local school district stating that they are not enrolled.

As defined by the Code of Federal Regulations, 34 CFR §463.25 and §463.26, not less than 95 percent of funds must be spent on adult education direct services and literacy activities. If awarded, programs may negotiate on an individual basis with DESE to determine an adequate level of funds for non-instructional purposes by submitting a written request and rationale annually with their continuation applications. Administrative costs must be reasonable, necessary, and allocable.

Adult Education and Family Literacy Services is a restricted rate program that is subject to a statutory "supplement not supplant" restriction. For this competition, applicants may include indirect cost rates to recover certain business-related expenses necessary to support the proposed services.

• Local Education Agencies (LEA) may apply their district rate .
• A non-LEA that has a current federally approved restricted indirect cost rate may use that rate.
• A non-LEA that has an FY22 approved indirect cost rate may use that rate. However, if awarded a grant, the agency must reapply to DESE for FY24 and annually through the grant cycle (2 CFR 200.332).
• A non-LEA that does not have either a Federal or DESE approved indirect cost rate may budget up to 8% percent of the agency's proposed budget to recover certain business-related expenses. However, if awarded a grant, the agency must apply to DESE for FY24 and that there is no guarantee that the rate will be approved (2 CFR 200.332).

Project Duration:

Upon Approval (No earlier than July 1, 2023) through June 30, 2024 Conditionally renewable for up to additional four years.

Renewals are subject to satisfactory performance, the appropriation of state and federal funds, and the continuance of federal authorizing legislation. Total grant award duration will not exceed five years (initial year plus renewals).

Program Unit:

Adult and Community Learning Services

Contact & Inquiries:

All inquiries must be submitted in writing to question portal. Q&A with answers to inquiries will be posted to ACLS Funding Opportunities on the ACLS website. Requests for assistance with submitting inquiries or locating the Q&A may be directed to the ACLS receptionist at (781) 338-3850.

The deadline for applicant submission of questions is Friday, February 17, 2023.

It is the responsibility of applicants to remain up to date with the posted questions and answers. Any RFP updates or revisions contained in the Q&A will supersede previous versions of the same.

(781) 338-3850

Date Due:

Proposals are due Friday, March 17, 2023, by 5:00 p.m. Eastern *

*All responses must be received by the due date listed above. Failure to do so will result in disqualification. Responses not received on time will not be reviewed. Applicants applying after the due date may be notified their application was received late and will not be reviewed. Applications must be submitted as directed in the Submissions Instructions below. Failure to do so may result in disqualification. If you need assistance with submitting your application, please reach out to the contact person listed on this funding opportunity.

Required Forms:

Option 1 ESOL Services:

• Part I — General — Program Unit Signature Page — (Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants)

• Part II — Budget Workbook
  Complete and upload the Budget Workbook. Complete all tabs as appropriate. Refer to Budget Workbook instructions . Important: Proposed expenditures must be necessary, allocable, allowable and reasonable to achieve the goals of the proposal, and adhere to the budget requirements outlined in FY24-FY28 Massachusetts Policies for Effective Adult Education in Community Adult Learning Centers and Correctional Institutions.
  Applicants must provide a compelling justification in their response to the Program Design prompt in Part V if the cost per enrollment falls below or exceeds the range described in Policy.

• Part III — Adult Education Data

• Part IV—Executive Summary
  The Executive Summary should provide a broad overview of proposed adult education services and how they align with the program mission. The applicant is also encouraged to share any additional program information they would like to highlight that is not addressed in the narrative responses. The Executive Summary is a required submission and is limited to a maximum of two pages using Arial 10 font with one-inch margins on all sides.

• Part V — Required Information: Narrative for CALC Applicants

• Appendix A — Class/Service Plan

• Appendix B — GEPA Statement

• Appendix C — Letters of Support

• Appendix D — Agency's Organizational Chart

• Appendix E — Resumes and Job Descriptions

• Appendix F — Teacher Observations

• Appendix G — Fiscal Overview

• Appendix H — Audit Report (only for community-based organizations) — a copy of the applying agency's latest completed audit report, issued by an independent certified public accountant. If an audit report is not included, the proposal will not be considered.

• Appendix I — Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) or Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) required for consortia

• Appendix J — Statement of Assurances

Option 2 Outstationing Services:

• Part I — General — Program Unit Signature Page — (Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants)

• Part II Outstationing Budget

• Part III — Required Information for Outstationing Services (Bristol and Berkshire local workforce area only)

Additional Information:

It is the responsibility of the applicant to return to this Request for Proposals and the Q&A page for updates and amendments. All updates and amendments supersede previous versions.

• Scoring Rubric

• Adult and Community Learning Services (ACLS website)

• FY24-FY28 Massachusetts Policies for Effective Adult Education in Community Adult Learning Centers and Correctional Institutions

• Accountability System

• Indicators of Program Quality

• 2020-2024 WIOA Massachusetts Combined State Plan

• FY22-FY25 WIOA 4-Year Local Plans by MassHire Workforce Area

• FY2022 - FY2025 WIOA Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)

• Regional Labor Market Blueprint

• Guidance for Adult Education — Shared Customers

• Professional Standards for Adult Educators (ESOL, ELA, and Mathematics)

• College and Career Readiness Standards for Adult Education

• Massachusetts English Language Proficiency Standards for Adult Education

• Adult Education Glossary

• Grants Essential Information

• Local Plan Alignment Form — WIOA requires that MassHire LWDBs review all applications submitted by eligible providers for alignment with local plans, local MOUs, and most recent local workforce data (regional labor market blueprints).

Submission Instructions:

Proposals must be submitted electronically via the RFP submission portal.

Applicants will create an account and be able to enter the portal for the RFP. Once you have created a user account and entered the portal, you will be asked to:

• Enter basic information

• Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required. You will not be able to submit your grant unless you include data or uploads in all required fields.

  Please note that you are presented with two choices at the bottom of the submission webpage: <Save Draft> and <Submit>. Once you choose Submit, you are no longer able to make edits or change the files you wish to upload. Save Draft should be used routinely until you have completed the entire process and are certain you are ready to send your materials submission to us.

  Also, please note that the Part II - Budget Workbook is an Excel for PC document. Please do not work on this document in Excel for Mac, as it will not render properly, even if you subsequently save the document in a PC environment.

  If problems occur while using the portal anytime, or if you encounter technical difficulties with the Part II — Budget Workbook contact Paula Jurigian .

Submit a response to all narrative prompts as applicable. (Note: The Part V narrative response application may not exceed 25 pages; Part VI, Outstationing may not exceed 3 pages). Pages that exceed the above page limits will not be reviewed and scored.

Applicants are required to provide page numbers on every page of the narrative response. All narrative responses must be in a font no smaller than Arial 10 font, with 1" margins on all sides.

Awarded Recipients: Upon award, recipients will be required to enter the approved budget and Part I in EdGrants. Programs with administration cost above 5% will also need to submit an Administrative Cost Justification Form. Once selected, recipients will be contacted with further instructions on the process.

Note: DESE reserves the right to conduct a site visit prior to award.

Proposals must be submitted electronically via the RFP submission portal.

Last Updated: June 26, 2024