FY2019: Leading Educational Access (LEAP) DCP Incentive Grant

Fund Code: 231

Purpose:

The purpose of this grant is to support district ongoing efforts to meet the needs of all students by systemically strengthening the knowledge and skills of educators in building inclusive environments and delivering culturally responsive instruction. This grant is aligned with the Leading Educational Access Project (LEAP), which was created to support the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's (DESE) commitment to improving outcomes for all students, especially our most vulnerable students — inclusive of low-income students, ELL students, students of color, and students with disabilities.

As a component of LEAP the Developing Cultural Proficiency Institute (DCP) was initiated August 2018 and will continue through the 2018-2019 school year. This grant provides funding to a cohort of 16 Massachusetts district teams currently participating in DCP. DESE has been working collaboratively with these teams to assess why there are gaps in outcomes for student subgroups and how to address this issue through inclusive environments and culturally responsive instruction. DCP district-level teams include Athol-Royalston, Brockton, Chelsea, Fitchburg, Framingham, Gill-Montague, Holyoke, Lowell, Methuen, Pittsfield, Randolph and Worcester. DCP school-level teams include Boston's Orchard Gardens, C.A.S.H., Washington-Irving, and Paul A. Dever.

Priorities:

The priorities of this grant align with the following Department-wide goals:

• Strengthen curriculum, instruction, and assessment

• Improve educator effectiveness

• Use data and technology to support student performance

• Support the social, emotional, and health needs of students and families.

Successful grant proposals will focus on at least one of the following priorities:

1. Creating culturally responsive socially and intellectually safe learning environments for all students;

2. Developing educator skills and techniques for interrupting bias and supporting student achievement and educational equity;

3. Increasing engagement of educators in self-exploration and reflection on personal attitudes, beliefs, and assumptions regarding cultural proficiency, equity, and anti-bias education;

4. Improving culturally responsive teaching through lesson design to make content and instruction more responsive and inclusive;

5. Creating a more culturally responsive school/district environment inclusive of families and community partners; and

6. Building leader/coach and/or teacher capacity to lead a school/district to be more culturally responsive.

Successful grant proposals must articulate how the proposed activities are directly related to the Developing Cultural Proficiency Institute (DCP) work, how they will contribute to systemic best practices and which data-driven methods will be used to track and assess outcomes. Proposals must focus on the development and sustainability of best practices for all students, rather than on programming only for specific students.

Plans or programs to be developed should:

1. Be evidence-based

2. Align with school/district-wide initiatives and turnaround plans

3. Relate directly to the DCP work

Proposals will be organized according to an explicit theory of action, detailing:

1. The rationale and goals for the initiative;

2. An action plan; and

3. How the effectiveness of the initiative will be evaluated, sustained, and improved over time.

Proposals will state explicit S.M.A.R.T. goals for administrators, educators, and students.

If you will braid funds from this grant with other funds, or if you will use in-kind resources, you will be asked in the Required Program Information to detail the source and nature of these other funds or in-kind resources.

Eligibility:

Eligible to apply for this grant are the cohort of 12 Massachusetts district teams and 4 Massachusetts Boston school teams currently participating in DESE's Developing Cultural Proficiency Institute (DCP) and working collaboratively with DESE to assess why there are gaps in outcomes for student subgroups and how to address this issue through inclusive environments and culturally responsive instruction. DCP district-level teams include Athol-Royalston, Brockton, Chelsea, Fitchburg, Framingham, Gill-Montague, Holyoke, Lowell, Methuen, Pittsfield, Randolph and Worcester. DCP school-level teams include Boston's Orchard Gardens, C.A.S.H., Washington-Irving, and Paul A. Dever.

Funding Type:

Federal CFDA:84.027

Funding:

Approximately a total of $140,000 is available, subject to federal appropriation. Grant amounts will be $10,000 per district-level team (12 eligible) and $5,000 per Boston school-level teams (4 eligible).

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:

Funds may be used for:

• Computer software
• Conference registration
• Consultants
• In-State Travel
• Instructional materials or supplies
• Membership and subscriptions
• MTRS/Fringe (related to stipends only)
• Printing and reproduction
• Stipends
• Substitutes

Funds may not be used at any time for:

• Computer hardware
• Food and refreshments
• Indirect costs
• Out-of-State Travel
• Staff salaries

Project Duration:

Upon Approval – 8/31/2019

All grant-funded activities must be completed by the end of August 2019.

An electronic report on grant activities and resulting outcomes is required. An online link to the grant report form will be emailed to grant recipients by September 1, 2019.

Program Unit:

Systems for Student Success Office

Contact:

Susan Fischer
(781) 338-3365

Date Due:

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis, with a final submission deadline of Friday, March 1, 2019.

Required Forms:

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

Required Program Information Form

Additional Information:

1. Instructions for Completing an Application Submission in EdGrants
   
   1. EdGrants Front Office User Guide: Application Submission
   2. EdGrants Front Office User Guide: Requesting Grant Funds (payments)
   3. EdGrants: User Security Controls
   4. Budget Detail — Description of Line Item Information
   
   
2. Applications can legally claim expenses to the grant only from the date of final ESE 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:

• FY19 231 LEAP DCP Applicant Name

All items listed under the required forms section of this RFP should be uploaded / attached in the Attachments List formlet of the Application Submission in EdGrants. This includes a signed / scanned PDF of Part I / Coversheet with Superintendent's signature and Required Program Information Form. 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, 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.

Last Updated: January 11, 2019