1. Focus School Grant ApplicationFocus School Grant Application Consolidated Planning & MonitoringConsolidated Planning & Monitoring June 16, 2015June 16, 2015

2. Agenda  Grant Overview  Eligible schools  Grant Awards  Application Development  ePlan Walk-Through  Budget 2

3. Overview of the Focus School Grant  The purpose of the Focus Schools Grant is to provide Title I Focus Schools with additional resources to help close the achievement gap of one or more identified subgroups of students.  Funds must be targeted at closing the achievement gap of the subgroup(s) for which the school received its Focus designation.  The grant is based on the five TDOE strategic priorities. 3

4. Five TDOE Strategic Priorities  Early Foundations – Ensure students are building the necessary skills in early grades to be ready for future success  Support Educators – Strategically support the preparation and development of a strong educator workforce in Tennessee  High School and Bridge to Postsecondary – Strategically support the preparation and development of a strong workforce in Tennessee  Empower Districts – Provide districts with the data, support, and autonomy they need to make the best decisions for their students  All Means All – Provide individualized support and additional opportunities for students who are furthest behind 4

5. Eligibility and Awards  Eligible districts are those with Title I schools designated as Focus Schools per the list released in August 2014.  Eligible districts may apply for an award of $50,000 to $100,000 for each Title I Focus School it chooses to serve.  Grant awards will be for the 2015-16 school year, with the possibility of renewal for a second year based on the school’s progress toward the gap closure goal(s) included in this application.  Grant funds must be obligated by September 30, 2016 and liquidated by November 30, 2016. 5

6. Application Development  Districts should assist Focus Schools in developing the application and gap closure plan.  School leadership, responsible for implementing the gap closure plan, should be given the autonomy to take the lead. 6

7. LEA Role Application Development  Assist Focus Schools in development of the application and gap closure plan.  Give autonomy to school leadership in implementation of the gap closure plan Monitor and Support  Monitor grant implementation and progress toward gap closure goals  Provide support to school’s gap closure efforts 7

8. Budget  One-Year Budgets – Complete the budget in ePlan for the amount requested.  Budgets must align with the grant application.  There will be two budget revision windows, October 2015 and February 2016.  All expenditures must meet the federal guidelines of Title I, Part A; School Improvement (1003a).  Job-embedded professional development is encouraged as opposed to attendance at national conferences.  Be sure to include sufficient detail in budget narratives. 8

9. SIG Budget Instructions 1. Indicate Cost for Personnel Positions Please include the number of positions and the amount allocated to each. If there are multiple positions of the same type and cost, these can be combined. Returned Approved Division of Consolidated Planning and Monitoring 9

10. SIG Budget Instructions 2. Include Quantities Please include the quantity of all equipment and materials & supplies along with a brief description. Returned Approved Division of Consolidated Planning and Monitoring 10

11. SIG Budget Instructions 3. Indicate ORIGINAL BUDGET before each narrative Please type ORIGINAL BUDGET before each narrative. This will help differentiate the original budgets from the revised budgets you will complete later in the year. Approved Division of Consolidated Planning and Monitoring 11

12. Timeline  Application available in ePlan: June 12, 2015  LEA’s Letter of Intent to Apply: July 1, 2015  Application Due Date: Monday, July 20, 2015  Grants Awarded: August 15, 2015  Grant Funds Obligation Date: September 30, 2016  Final Reimbursement Date: November 30, 2016 12

13. Questions? 13

14. Focus School Grant Application Application Walk-Through in ePlan 14

15. Focus Schools Grant – in ePlan  The Focus Schools grant is located in Year 2016 on the FUNDING- FUNDING APPLICATIONS screen.  The link appears in the list of Competitive Funding Applications. 15

16. Focus Schools Grant Director ePlan Access  To work on this application in ePlan, users must complete an ePlan User Access Form for the role of “Focus Schools Grant Director.”  The User Access Form can be downloaded from the TDOE Resources section in ePlan. 16

17. Don’t Forget to Click DRAFT STARTED  After obtaining access, click on DRAFT STARTED to begin working on the application. 17

18. Sections for the LEA and the Schools  This application has questions at both the LEA-level and the school- level.  Applicants do not need to complete anything in the Checklist or the View Applicant Summary sections. 18

19. The LEA Cover Page Official Address and Contact Person  Provide the LEA’s demographic and contact information. Schools to be Served  Choose the schools to be served from the drop-down list.  For each schools enter the school’s NCES # and the amount of funding requested (per school).  For each school, choose one (1) or two (2) Strategic Priority(s) from the strategic priorities list. Type the exact name(s) of the desired strategic priority(s) in the textbox. The list of strategic priorities is directly above the School Name textbox.  Use the ADD ROW feature to add more schools if needed. LEA Capacity  Provide narrative response to the question regarding LEA Capacity. 19

20. LEA Related Documents & Assurances Related Documents  Print the Assurances form provided in the Related Documents section of LEA portion of the application. Acquire appropriate signatures and upload when completed. Assurances  Additionally, click the checkbox on the Assurances page to electronically agree to the grant assurances. 20

21. Completing School Applications  To work on schools applications, you will need to add a grant application for each school.  To do this, click the dropdown list under the words “Focus Schools Grant” and select the words “Add Grant Application.” 21

22. Selecting a School  Select the desired school from the “Please select a building” dropdown box and click SAVE. Here we have chose Donelson Elementary. 22

23. Making the School the “Active” School  Once again using the dropdown box, make the selected school the “active” school to appear in the dropdown box.  Now, all of the pages in the section below the school name will apply to that school. 23

24. Page in the School’s Section Budget Page  Complete the budget page as you would for any other budget in ePlan.  Use “Add Item” to add budget line items.  Use the dropdown menu to choose items.  Narrative descriptions are required.  Don’t forget to SAVE often.  This is a one-year budget.  Since there is no allocation at this point, the Amount Remaining is the negative of the absolute value of the amount that is budgeted. 24

25. Sample 25 Graphic reflects information from the previous slide…

26. The School Program Page Question 1: Strategic Priorities and Intervention Activities  Select one (1) or two (2) checkboxes to indicate the strategic priority(s) for the active school.  These should correspond to the strategic priority(s) indicated in the Schools to be Served section.  Under each strategic priority, select the desired intervention activities.  Provide an explanation if choosing “Other.” Question 2: Strategic Plan Narrative  Complete the Strategic Plan narrative question. Remember that users can format narratives using the formatting tools in ePlan. Feel free to copy and paste into these boxes from MS Word or other external documents. 26

27. The School Program Page Gap Closure Planning Template 1. GOAL For the active school, enter one (1) or two (2) gap closure goals. 2. STRATEGIC PRIORITY For each gap closure goal, choose the corresponding strategic priority(s) designated for the active school. 3. INTERVENTION ACTIVITY For each strategic priority, list the intervention activity(s) indicated in the table above. 4. QUESTIONS For each intervention activity, answer the five required questions per intervention activity. 27

28. Other Pages in the School Section  Focus School Grant Schools Allocations will not display until grants are awarded.  Do not complete any information in the Plan Relationships.  Use Related Documents for any school-level supporting documentation.  Note: use the Related Documents section in the LEA-level portion of the application for documents pertaining to the entire school district. 28

29. Submitting the Application  The Focus School Grant Director will click DRAFT COMPLETED to submit the application.  The LEA Fiscal Representative will receive an email from ePlan to approve the application.  The LEA Fiscal Representative will click LEA FISCAL REPRESENTATIVE APPROVED to approve the application.  The LEA Authorized Representative will receive an email from ePlan to approve the application.  The LEA Authorized Representative will click LEA AUTHORIZED REPRESENTAIVE APPROVED to submit the application.  The TDOE will receive and review your application.  REMEMBER: This is a competitive grant ! 29

30. Contact Information  Application Questions – Rita.Fentress@tn.govRita.Fentress@tn.gov  Budget Questions– Brian.Hull@tn.govBrian.Hull@tn.gov  ePlan Questions – Linda.Stachera@tn.govLinda.Stachera@tn.gov 30

31. 31 Fraud, Waste or Abuse Citizens and agencies are encouraged to report fraud, waste or abuse in state and local government. NOTICE: This agency is a recipient of taxpayer funding. If you observe an agency director or employee engaging in any activity which you consider to be illegal, improper or wasteful, please call the state Comptroller’s toll-free Hotline: 1-800-232-5454 Notifications can also be submitted electronically at: http://www.comptroller.tn.gov/hotline