FY2025: Growing Literacy Equity Across Massachusetts (GLEAM), PreK–12

Fund Codes: 0509/0510

Purpose:

Growing Literacy Equity Across Massachusetts (GLEAM), PreK–12 grants will support deep and lasting improvements to schools' multi-tiered system of support for literacy, enabling schools to better serve all students, especially historically underserved students; and ensuring that all students can reach their literacy potential. Fund Code 0509 is for grades PreK–5. Fund Code 0510 is for grades 6–12.

GLEAM grants will support schools to implement components of a multi-tiered system of support for ELA/Literacy in grades PreK–12, which have been shown to promote equity of access and achievement for diverse students. This grant will focus on supporting:

• Adoption and implementation of high-quality core curricular materials and intervention materials for ELA/Literacy
• Onsite customized support responsive to districts and schools' strengths, needs, challenges, and opportunities
• Professional development and support for teachers, principals, and literacy coaches to support skillful and culturally and linguistically sustaining tiered instruction and high-quality early childhood education experiences.

Priorities:

DESE seeks to award GLEAM grants to entities that:

• Are committed to prioritizing literacy equity and excellence, and want to collaborate with other districts statewide to make this a reality
• Demonstrate favorable conditions and the resources, including time and commitment, necessary to make and sustain meaningful Literacy program improvements, across multiple schools if applicable
• Bring together a diverse coalition of stakeholders committed to the activities articulated in the grant proposal, including families, diverse staff members, administrators, school committee, and students where appropriate
• Are actively investing in equity, inclusion, and culturally and linguistically sustaining literacy practices for all learners

Eligibility:

This continuation grant is intended for FY23 GLEAM Cohort 2 FC509 and FC510 GLEAM Grant recipients. The eligible districts include:

• Barnstable Public School (FC509)
• Everett Public Schools (FC509)
• Fall River Public Schools (FC510)
• Framingham Public Schools (FC509)
• KIPP Academy Boston (FC510)
• KIPP Academy Lynn (FC510)
• Malden Public Schools (FC510)
• Marlborough Public Schools (FC510)
• Milford Public Schools (FC510)
• New Bedford Public Schools (FC510)
• Peabody Public Schools (FC510)
• Revere Public Schools (FC510)
• Salem Public Schools (FC509)

Curriculum Data must be up to date on DESE District Profiles for K–8 ELA/Literacy, K–12 math, and 6–8 Science by the time of the grant due date. To check if this information is complete, check the statewide Curriculum report. Or, visit your District Profiles page via Profiles Home, and select Curriculum Data from the left-hand navigation. If the required data is not complete or up-to-date, details and directions on how to enter or update this data can be found at Curriculum Data Collection webpage.

Funding Type:

Federal CFDA 84.371 Growing Literacy Equity Across Massachusetts (GLEAM) Grant Program - Center for Instructional Support

Federal grant funds must adhere to:
Comprehensive Literacy State Development (CLSD)

UGG (2 CFR 200)

EDGAR As Applicable

EDGAR General Fiscal Administration 34 CFR Part 76

Funding:

There is approximately $1,340,000 available for FC0509 (grades PreK–5), and approximately 1,730,000 available for FC0510 (grades 6–12) in FY25. Recipients will need to provide detailed cost information to DESE to demonstrate compliance with grant priorities and approved fund uses in order to draw down funds over the grant period.

This RFP is the governing document for these grant funds.

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.

Fund Use:

This grant will provide funding as well as hands-on support from Department specialists for the following year for recipients to accomplish the activities listed. Following the grant period, recipients are expected to continue implementing the materials and practices initiated by this grant and will have access to ongoing customizes assistance from DESE specialists as needed.

1. Purchase of high-quality culturally and linguistically sustaining curricular materials. This grant will fund 50% (not to exceed $400,000 per district) of procurement of ELA/Literacy curricular materials, with the other half paid by the applicant
2. Purchase of instructional materials for use in Tier 2/3 interventions. This grant will fund 50% (not to exceed $50,000 per district) of procurement of instructional materials, with the other half paid by the applicant.
3. Professional development to support skillful and culturally responsive implementation of curricular materials, interventions, assessments, or materials for any selected tier(s) of focus.
4. Professional development for literacy coaches or similar building-based literacy leaders in a collaborative supportive network.
5. Customized onsite support from an expert literacy consultant.
6. Stipends are available for GLEAM Leadership Team members. The entity will be required to maintain a "GLEAM Leadership Team". This team will work together to coordinate and enact multi-year work of this initiative, across schools if applicable, and will also attend DESE-run conferences for GLEAM recipients.

For full details about the GLEAM program and how funds may be used, please see the Fund Use Details attachment .

Project Duration:

Upon Approval (Anticipated October 1, 2024)* – September 30, 2025

* Grant start date cannot be prior to DESE receiving a substantially approvable Application Submission as directed in this RFP's Submission Instructions. Goods and Services cannot be procured prior to Grants receiving and approving an application submission. Funds cannot exceed the project duration end date.

Program Unit:

Office of Literacy and Humanities
Center for Instructional Support (CIS)

Contact:

Lori McNally

Phone Number:

(781) 338-6244

Date Due:

Monday, July 15, 2024, at 5:00 p.m.

Proposals must be received at the Department by 5:00 p.m. Eastern on the date due.

Additional Information:

The Department is expanding grant support for ELA/Literacy over the next 3 years. Using federal CLSD funding, the Department expects to award $19 million in grants to support improvements in ELA/Literacy teaching and learning in preK–12 between FY22–FY25, under the program name GLEAM (Growing Literacy Equity Across Massachusetts).

GLEAM recipients will be required to prepare and provide data requested by the Department in order to evaluate the effectiveness of grant funds and activities.

This data will mainly focus on inputs, such as teacher training numbers, and curricular materials used, as well as outcomes, such as student performance in assessments. In addition, a national evaluation of this federally-funded program is being conducted; recipients will have the option to opt in to this national evaluation and to access additional related funding through the evaluator.

Early Literacy Universal Screening: LEAs receiving this award for ELA/Literacy will be required to participate in future research efforts related to early literacy assessment, including providing student-level assessment data from any approved early literacy screening assessment that is administered in the recipient schools during the award period. DESE will request that data be submitted by June 30 of each year awarded. DESE will analyze the statewide data collected for research purposes. Analyses will only be reported in the aggregate (e.g., by grade-level, region, etc.) in order to meet state and federal confidentiality laws. The identities of districts and schools will not be reported. All reporting will protect the identities of students, educators, schools, and districts.

Submission Instructions:

Any questions about GLEAM grants must be emailed to lori.b.mcnally@mass.gov. Q+A will be posted to Growing Literacy Equity Across Massachusetts (GLEAM) Grant Program.

Assistance for applicants will be offered. Please check Growing Literacy Equity Across Massachusetts (GLEAM) Grant Program for details.

The FY25 0509/0510 GLEAM Grant will be submitted in our new GEM$ system. GEM$ is a cloud-based fiscal and program management grant system that will eventually phase out the use of EdGrants.

Grants for Education Management System (GEM$)

Please Note: Grant Submission at the LEA level requires roles to be established for Grant writer for the specific fund code, LEA fiscal for financial review/approval, and Superintendent/Chief Executive sign off. All these roles should be established prior to the grant due date and all appropriate forms should be either uploaded to GEM$, maintained at the LEA level or sent in to the DESE RFP contact as described on the individual forms. The user guidance documents and forms are found on the GEM$ homepage under DESE Resources. This form can be accessed without logging in to the system.

Last Updated: May 9, 2024