FY2019: Perkins Postsecondary Allocation Grant 2018-2019

Fund Code: 401

Purpose:

The mission of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is to strengthen the Commonwealth's public education system so that every student is prepared to succeed in postsecondary education, compete in the global economy, and understand the rights and responsibilities of American citizens, and in so doing, to close all proficiency gaps.

The goal of Massachusetts' public K–12 education system is to prepare all students for success after high school. Our five core strategies to accelerate the pace of school improvement are:

1. Strengthening standards, curriculum, instruction, and assessment
2. Promoting educator development
3. Supporting social-emotional learning, health, and safety
4. Turning around the state's lowest performing districts and schools
5. Enhancing resource allocation and data use

The purpose of this federal grant is to assist public two-year colleges with programs that meet the definition of career and technical education as contained in the Carl D. Perkins Career & Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006 P.L.109-270 (Perkins IV).

Priorities:

The priority is to improve career & technical education program outcomes on the Perkins IV core indicators of performance set forth in Perkins IV. Note: A minimum of 20% of the allocation funds must be used for secondary-postsecondary linkage activities and services.

The Special Conditions required last year for Receipt of Perkins Funds for Postsecondary Institution will continue in FY19:

In FY18, the Commonwealth received notification from the United States Department of Education that its Perkins funded programming failed to meet the 90% performance threshold for the following Core Indicators for Postsecondary Education for the past three (3) years:

• 5P1 Nontraditional Participation
• 5P2 Nontraditional Completion

As a result of this failure to meet performance standards, the Department will continue to require Perkins Postsecondary recipients who did not meet the last three consecutive years of 5P1 and/or 5P2 Core Performance Indicators, to adhere to the following conditions to qualify for funding:

1. Specify the categories of students for which there were identifiable disparities or gaps in performance compared to all students or any other categories of students based on your Perkins Core Indicator Data Reports.
2. Identify action steps the postsecondary institution will take to address the failure to meet the 90% performance threshold for all students and how it will address identifiable gaps in performance among categories of students.
3. Provide a timeline with specific action steps about how this year's Perkins funding may be used to increase Nontraditional Participation and/or Nontraditional Completion.
4. Identify the individual(s) responsible in your institution to oversee the successful and timely completion of each action step. This individual(s) will work in collaboration with DESE staff and the DESE Equity Contractor(s).
5. Target funding in this year's grant towards increasing Nontraditional Participation and/or Nontraditional Completion.
6. Review and update any previously submitted improvement plans for 5P1 Nontraditional Participation and/or 5P2 Nontraditional Completion.
7. Participate in any professional development activities provided by the Department to address 5P1 Nontraditional Participation and/or 5P2 Nontraditional Completion.
8. Reports are required on your institution's progress towards improving performance under these two performance categories. Quarterly reports are due on October 19, 2018, January 18, 2019, and April 19, 2019. Please send reports to Marnie Jain.

Eligibility:

Information on eligibility is contained in the Massachusetts Perkins IV Manual.

Funding Type:

Federal CFDA 84.048

Funding:

Perkins Postsecondary Allocation

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:

Perkins IV allocation funds must be used in accordance with Perkins IV and the Massachusetts Perkins IV Manual. Funds shall supplement and not supplant non-Federal funds.

Project Duration:

Upon approval through 08/31/2019

Program Unit:

Resource Allocation Strategy and Planning

Contact:

Federal Grant Programs

Phone Number:

(781) 338-6230

Date Due:

Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Grants will be reviewed as they are received. To assure funds will be available for the beginning of the school year, submit the Application Submission in EdGrants on or prior to the desired start date.

Required Forms:

Part I — General — Program Unit Signature Page — (Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants) Note: Please sign and date your cover page and ensure the amount matches the amount budgeted

Part II — FY19 Budget Template (This is a budget template for the applicant to use as part of planning discussions in order to prepare for officially entering it into EdGrants. The actual final budget will be entered directly into EdGrants as part of the application submission process.)

Part III — Required Program Information-Notes Table

Required if applicable:

Schedule A Attachment

Additional Information:

Perkins Quick Reference Guide — Postsecondary on allowable and unallowable costs

Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR)

Grants for Schools: Getting Them and Using Them, A Procedural Manual

Massachusetts Perkins IV Manual and Perkins Act

Applicants can only legally claim expenses to the grant only starting from the date of final DESE approval. Therefore, to expedite approval, it is essential to have district contact staff that can be reached in July and August to respond to questions, as needed.

Submission Instructions:

Submit all required grant materials through EdGrants.

In EdGrants, institutions are required to create and name the project. Please use the following naming convention for your "Applicant Project Name" in EdGrants:

FY19 401 Perkins Applicant Name

All required forms should be uploaded / attached in the Attachments List format of the Application Submission. This includes a signed / scanned PDF of Part I / Coversheet with the College President's signature or Superintendent for consortium, as well as Part III required forms. 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 institution 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: June 22, 2018