Commissioner's Weekly Update 6 22 20 - Summer and Vacation Learning Program Grant, ESSER Deadline Extended, New SOA Plan Deadline

A message from the
Massachusetts Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education

June 22, 2020

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News from Commissioner Jeffrey C. Riley and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

1. Summer and Vacation Learning Program Grant Posted:

The Summer and Vacation Learning Program Grant has now been posted at http://www.doe.mass.edu/grants/2021/114-333/. Proposals are due by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 2, and submission instructions are included at the above link.

As a reminder, the purpose of this new, competitive, federally-funded grant is to help local school districts, vocational technical schools, and charter schools develop, expand, or enhance high-quality, in-person, remote, or hybrid learning programs for the summer of 2020 and/or school vacations during the 2020-2021 school year. The grant can also be used to support the development and implementation of weekend learning programs that will take place during the 2020-2021 school year.

Please note that the districts and schools that submitted an intent to apply by the stated due date of Thursday, June 18 will be considered first.

Picture of the Week:

Many thanks to all the districts who shared photos of the Class of 2020 with DESE! The Department’s homepage now features a collage of the graduates. Congratulations to all!

3. Deadline Extended to Submit FY21 CARES Act ESSER Applications:

Due to the ongoing uncertainties surrounding many important fiscal matters for districts, DESE has extended the FY21 CARES Act Elementary and Secondary School Education Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) (Fund Code 113) application deadline to Friday, August 14, 2020. Districts, of course, may apply any time before this new deadline to access their funds.

Note that the FY20 application deadline was June 15 and has now closed. The Department is now only accepting applications for the FY21 Fund Code 113 ESSER grant.

4. New SOA Plan Deadline:

Consistent with St. 2020, Ch. 56, § 9, Commissioner Riley has extended the deadline for school districts and charter schools to submit Student Opportunity Act (SOA) plans. The new deadline is Tuesday, August 18, 2020. The Department thanks those who have already submitted their SOA plans and encourages all districts and charter schools that have not yet done so to submit their plans as soon as possible, with the reassurance that there will be opportunities to amend the SOA plans if necessary. Current guidance on SOA plans is available online, as is guidance specific to charter schools.

5. District Induction and Mentoring Survey Forms:

On Monday, June 29, DESE will release the survey form for districts’ 2020 Induction and Mentoring Reports. Reports are required of traditional school districts and Horace Mann charter schools and are optional for Commonwealth charter schools.

Districts will have three months to complete and submit their Induction and Mentoring Report (we are extending the deadline to Wednesday, September 30.) Individuals designated as induction and mentoring contacts within each district are required to complete the report. Please review the local Directory Administration and confirm that your mentoring and induction contact information is up-to-date by 12:00 p.m. on Friday, June 26. If the local directory administrator does not provide an induction and mentoring contact, the induction and mentoring contact person will default to the superintendent. Please update your districts’ induction and mentoring contacts as appropriate.

6. Reminder on Restraint Reporting:

All districts, collaboratives, charter schools, and approved special education schools are required to use the Restraint Application Tool in DESE’s Security Portal to meet the data collection and reporting requirements of 603 CMR 46.00 for the 2019-2020 school year. The tool is where the use of any physical restraint is reported and includes notification of injuries to students and staff. At this time, the data collection tool is only for Massachusetts enrolled students for restraints occurring during the school day.

On May 26, 2020, in the Commissioner’s Weekly Update, all schools were informed that a step was added to the online tool in order for users to certify that their restraint data for each school/district is complete and accurate, even if 0 restraints have occurred. The person identified to certify that the data is correct must be assigned the Restraint Certification role by their local Directory Administrator.

The 2019-2020 school year restraint data collection will close at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 30. Anyone with questions about this data collection should contact restraint@doe.mass.edu.

7. Massachusetts Migrant Education Program:

The Department is seeking an organization that will be responsible for the implementation of the Massachusetts Migrant Education Program, which addresses the unique educational needs of migratory children. The organization will be responsible for identification and recruitment, providing program services, conducting outreach and coordination, collaborating with school districts, maintaining a student data system, developing and submitting reports, providing and attending professional development, and involving parents. The bid/request for responses is posted online, and submissions are due by Monday, July 27, 2020.

Copyright © 2020 Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, All rights reserved.

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