Emergency Assistance for Approved Private Special Education Schools — Workforce FY2023

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Purpose and Scope

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts recognizes that throughout the course of the COVID-19 public health emergency, approved private special education school day and residential programs have predominately remained open in order to provide vital services to students with disabilities. These approved programs continue to provide essential services and supports to vulnerable populations of students, including some students who are in the care and custody of the Commonwealth through the Department of Children and Families. These programs continue to face negative economic impacts from COVID-19 such as shortages of direct care staff, increased costs, and unpredictable enrollment. Due to economic and other impacts of COVID-19, approved private special education day and residential school programs are experiencing significant challenges recruiting and retaining qualified and eligible staff necessary to provide services and supports to students that they serve. These programs are also faced with challenges in securing the materials and services necessary to maintain normal operations.

This grant opportunity is aimed at both strengthening and stabilizing the workforce in approved private special education day and residential school programs and providing these programs with the necessary materials and services required to maintain normal operations amid the ongoing pandemic. Therefore, the Commonwealth has allocated State funds for the approved private special education day and residential programs to assist them with maintaining and strengthening the workforce needed to provide essential services to Massachusetts students, and to provide other services and materials necessary to maintain normal operations. The goal of the EAASES Workforce FY23 grant is to increase recruitment, hiring, and retention of qualified and eligible staff and to provide these schools with the necessary resources to maintain normal operations, which in turn will increase the enrollment of Massachusetts students in the programs, and provide students with high quality direct care, educational services, and other services.

This memorandum provides approved special education programs with information regarding eligibility for and the allowable use of these funds.

Available Funding Amount

Approximately $140M in state funding has been made available for this program based on a 14% increase in the OSD-approved price for students in each program, based on the higher of the number of students in the school's DESE-approved FY22 enrollment or the actual enrollment in the program reported to DESE as of November 23, 2021. The FY23 award allocations also accounted for programs that closed prior to the 2022-23 school year, as well as for one new program that opened. Programs may use the grant to fund any allowable expenses that have occurred since July 1, 2022.

Eligibility Criteria

1. The program must be recognized by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to provide special education and other related services to students with disabilities in approved private special education day and residential school programs; and
2. The program must complete a grant application demonstrating that it qualifies for the grant, provide all required attestations, including that it will comply with all applicable requirements and provide required details related to planned expenditures.
3. The program must have completed all requirements of the FY22 EAASES-II and EAASES-Workforce FY22 programs, including the required data collection for EAASES-Workforce FY22.

Application Requirements and Award Process

Eligible agencies must submit the following information to receive the allocated funding:

1. An attestation signed by the Executive Director of the agency, stating that:
   1. due to the economic impacts of COVID-19 or other challenges created by the ongoing pandemic, the approved program is experiencing difficulties filling positions and retaining qualified staff needed to provide direct care, educational services, or related services to students with disabilities;
   2. the approved program will maintain supporting documentation for all expenditures under this grant and provide any data or documentation requested by the Commonwealth during and after the grant period for reporting and other compliance purposes, including but not limited to data on student enrollment and staffing levels.
2. The estimated use of funding to address the approved program's recruitment, hiring, and retention efforts, with a focus on positions with high vacancy rates that provide direct services to students with disabilities, and use of funding for other allowable costs. (See "Allowable Uses and Eligible Staff" below for more details.) The submission must include the planned use of funding from the application date through June 30, 2023, to address vacancies in eligible staff positions, summarized by allowable use (e.g. salaries increases from what to what, count and amount of staff incentives). Programs may change the planned use of funding but will be required to confirm that all funding is expended on allowable costs. (See "Allowable Uses and Eligible Staff" and "Payment Terms and Conditions".).
3. A signed contract (see Appendix A).

Funding awards will be made on a rolling basis. After an approved program applies for EAASES Workforce FY23 funding, DESE will review and confirm that all eligibility criteria are met before executing a final contract with the school.

Payment Terms and Conditions

1. Eligible costs must be incurred from July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023.
2. A data collection report on spending, student enrollment, number of staff, and number of staff vacancies through June 30, 2023 will be required no later than July 31, 2023.
3. If the grant award is not expended by the reporting deadlines, the balance must be returned to DESE.
4. Failure to comply with any state or federal reporting requirements or requests may result in an obligation to promptly return funds to the Commonwealth.

Allowable Uses and Eligible Staff

Approved programs must use at least 90% of the award for costs related to:

• Recruitment, hiring, and retention of eligible staff. Eligible staff are defined as frontline staff who regularly provide educational services, direct care, or related services directly to students with disabilities in approved private special education school day and residential programs.
  • The following are allowable uses of funding to address vacancies in eligible staff positions, including recruitment, hiring and retention of these staff, provided that the recruitment or retention cost began on or after July 1, 2022:
    • Recruitment and retention incentives;
    • Salary increases; and
    • Overtime, provided the overtime is incurred on a limited basis while planned recruitment and retention strategies covered by this award are underway.

Approved programs may use up to 10% of the award for costs related to:

• COVID-19 response supplies and services;
• learning support services, such as educational technology;
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE); and
• other supports that directly benefit students.

The following are not eligible under this grant: compensation, bonuses, incentives, benefits or any other types of payments for highly compensated employees or to executive management, administrators or individuals in positions that do not regularly provide direct care, educational services, or related services directly to the students in the approved programs.

Providers are encouraged to choose the most optimal use of funds to meet their workforce recruitment and retention needs, so long as such methods comply with all state requirements and related guidance.

If an approved program has questions or concerns regarding this grant, please contact DESE at ASESGrants@mass.gov .

Last Updated: September 16, 2022