FY2026: Computer Science (CS) Engage

Fund Code: 0126

Purpose:

The purpose of this continuation grant is to establish and promote rigorous, engaging, and standards-aligned digital literacy and computer science (DLCS) education in public schools for kindergarten through grade 12. This grant will continue the DLCS implementation work from the FY24 and FY25 CS Engage Grants.

Only districts who received funding for the FY25 FC0126 Computer Science (CS) Engage Grant are eligible for this continuation grant. They have planned and implemented CS education for at least one grade span (3–5 or 6–8). This continuation grant will build on that work by supporting districts in expanding their DLCS planning and implementation to include additional grade spans.

Best practices for DLCS planning and implementation include the creation of a district team to enact the changes needed to create rigorous, inclusive, and sustainable K–12 DLCS education. To participate in this grant, districts will form a District Team to include at least:

• one district administrator,
• one school leader for the FY26 grade span, and
• one DLCS teacher for the FY26 grade span.

The FY26 team's school leader and DLCS teacher must be from the selected grade span. The district administrator may remain the same.

During the FY26 grant period, educators from the FY25 district team will:

• Attend summer curriculum PD (up to 5 days) as well as school-year follow-up PD for select curriculum. Educators attending PD will receive stipends
• Use funding to purchase classroom devices (excluding student computers) associated with the selected curriculum for educators who attended the relevant summer curriculum PD
• Receive stipends or substitute reimbursement for up to four (4) curriculum planning days for educators who attended the relevant summer curriculum PD

During the FY26 grant period, the district team for the new grade span will:

• Engage in three (3) virtual, facilitated meetings to develop a DLCS Implementation Plan for their district and one (1) in-person, one-day DLCS Summit
• Select DLCS high quality instructional material (HQIM) curriculum for a new grade span, or expand a current grade span, for SY2027
• Identify educators to attend an Intro to Computer Science workshop in June 2026
• Plan for DLCS educator, administrator, counselor, and coach Professional Development (PD) during July and August 2026

Priorities:

Priority will be given to districts and schools in the strategic transformation region. This grant supports the creation of new programs and/or expansion of existing programs to serve more students who are the most underserved (including but not limited to students designated as economically disadvantaged, English language learners, special education, underrepresented races/ethnicities, underrepresented females, and those living in rural areas).

Eligibility:

Massachusetts public school districts which received funding for the FY25 Fund Code 0126 Computer Science (CS) Engage Grant are eligible to apply for the FY26 CS Engage continuation grant to continue their work.

Funding Type:

State Trust 7009-6601 Economic Growth and Relief Act (Chapter 268)

The receipt of grant funds is contingent upon the grantee being able to certify that it will comply with the Massachusetts General Laws, including G.L. c. 40A, § 3A, the MBTA Communities Act. Compliance with the MBTA Communities Act is determined by the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities.

Funding:

Approximately $339,000 is available.

This RFP is the governing document for these grant funds.

Funding is contingent upon availability. All dollar amounts listed are estimated/approximate and are subject to change. If more funding becomes available it will be distributed under the same guidelines that appear in this RFP document.

The initial level of funding could change during the year based on changes in the awarded program (e.g., scope, course, follow-up activities, number of participants, or number of course(s)). The grant budget may be amended up or down to reflect the program changes. Grant recipients are required to contact the program liaison to discuss any proposed change to the awarded program.

Fund Use:

This continuation grant will provide funding as well as hands-on support from Department specialists and a Professional Development Coordinator for recipients to accomplish the activities listed in the Purpose section of this RFP. Following the grant period, recipients are expected to continue implementing the materials and practices initiated by this grant.

Funds from this grant must be used in alignment with the purpose and priorities outlined and as described in the budget and application narrative questions that are submitted with the application.

Funds must be used in alignment with the purpose and priorities outlined and as described in the budget that is submitted to the Department's Center for Instructional Support Office/STEM. Teachers who participated in previous grant years are eligible to attend extension workshops to support their ongoing implementation. The following uses for the funds may be included in the budget.

1. Funds may be used for select PD including curriculum PD for educators in July/August 2025 who will be implementing the selected curriculum in SY25-26. Only comprehensive curriculum included in the Digital Literacy and Computer Science Curriculum Guide for Massachusetts Districts will be eligible. This funding may include:
   1. Curriculum PD workshop cost
   2. Stipends for eligible educators who complete the PD at $200 per full day
   3. Travel costs for teachers who attend. This includes mileage reimbursement and may include overnight accommodation if the distance to the workshop is over 30 miles from the attendee's home.
2. Funds may be used for DLCS computing devices for district-selected curriculum that requires the devices (e.g., micro:bits, robots) as well as associated storage materials, construction materials, project materials, and accessories (such as servos, sensors, and other components). This funding is only available for teachers who complete the summer curriculum PD. This funding may include:
   1. Maximum $1,500 per teacher who meets eligibility (pending funding)
3. Funds may be used for school year follow-up PD, from September to June 30, 2026, which is required by select curricula. This funding may include:
   1. Maximum four (4) days of stipends at $200 per full day
4. Funds may be used for stipends or substitute reimbursement for up to four (4) curriculum planning days (maximum of $200/day) for those teachers and coaches / curriculum leaders who complete the summer curriculum PD.
5. Funds may be used for three (3) DLCS Implementation Planning workshops for SY25-26. We anticipate three (3) virtual half-day workshops. This funding may include:
   1. Substitute reimbursement for teachers who attend
6. Funds may be used for attendance at the one-day DLCS Summit in May or June of 2026. This funding may include:
   1. Substitute reimbursement for teachers who attend
   2. Travel costs for District Team members who attend this in-person event, anticipated to be in the MetroWest area. This includes mileage reimbursement and may include overnight accommodation if the distance to the workshop is over 30 miles from the attendee's home.
7. Funds may be used for an Intro to CS workshop in June 2026 for any teachers who are new to DLCS who will be attending the summer curriculum PD and who will be implementing the selected curriculum in SY26-27. This funding may include:
   1. Workshop costs
   2. Stipends for eligible educators who complete the PD at $200 per full day
   3. Travel costs for teachers who attend this in-person 3-day event, anticipated to be in the MetroWest area
8. Funds may be used for stipends/salary for the District Team Point of Contact. The District Team Point of Contact maintains the plan and other grant artifacts in an accessible location, collects and reports data, and manages communication with DESE, the Grant Evaluator, and the PD Coordinator. For this role, plan for 1–2 hours/month for the 12 months of the grant.

Note: Grant funds may not be allocated to pay for both a participant's graduate credit tuition and a stipend; or substitute reimbursement and a stipend. Grant funding may only be used for stipends for work outside of work hours.

Project Duration:

Upon Approval(no earlier than 7/1/2025)* – 6/30/2026

* Grant start date cannot be prior to DESE receiving a substantially approvable Application Submission as directed in this RFP's Submission Instructions. Goods and Services cannot be procured prior to Grants receiving and approving an application submission. Funds cannot exceed the project duration end date.

Program Unit:

Center for Instructional Support Office / STEM

Contact:

Alva Laster

Phone Number:

413-314-6705

Date Due:

Friday, May 30, 2025 at 5:00 PM*

Proposals must be received at the Department by 5:00 p.m. Eastern on the date due.

Required Forms:

Budget and Application Narrative Questions must be submitted in our new GEM$ system online. GEM$ requires former signatories to approve applications in GEM$.

Additional Information:

As Computer Science (CS) Engage Grant recipients, District and school teams agree to participate in an external, third-party, independent evaluation of the CS Engage Grant activities with the goal of supporting improvements to the training, curricula implementation, and supports. The evaluation methods used with district and school teams may include, but are not limited to, surveys, interviews, and/or focus groups. School and district administrators will support the evaluation by participating in evaluation activities and by supporting teachers' participation in evaluation activities. Additionally, the district administrators will connect the evaluation team with district personnel who can identify appropriate data collection policies. The following is a list of possible school- and district- level data that may be shared between the District, DESE, and/or potential third-party evaluators.

• Personnel participation data (e.g., attendance in trainings and implementation meetings, teacher experience surveys)
• Implementation data (i.e., measures of curricula implementation fidelity that could be reported by the school/district teams, or through interviews surveys, and other methods)
• School and district outcome data related to DLCS classes (e.g., class schedules, student demographics in DLCS classes, student grades, student interest surveys, MCAS scores, etc.)

DESE and all of our research partners are required by federal (FERPA) and state (FIPA) law to protect the confidentiality of individual-level data. Research partners are required to enter into a legal agreement with DESE to ensure the confidentiality of all data and reporting that meets state and federal law as well as DESE's additional suppression rules to ensure that no individual can be identified.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education expects grant recipients to share a description of the outcomes of the grant and products as requested to expand the impact of the grant.

Submission Instructions:

The FY26 FC0126 CS Engage Grant will be submitted in our new GEM$ system. GEM$ is a cloud-based fiscal and program management grant system that will eventually phase out the use of EdGrants.

Grants for Education Management System (GEM$)

Please Note: Grant Submission at the LEA level requires roles to be established for Grant writer for the specific fund code, LEA fiscal for financial review/approval, and Superintendent/Chief Executive sign off. All these roles should be established prior to the grant due date and all appropriate forms should be either uploaded to GEM$, maintained at the LEA level or sent in to the DESE RFP contact as described on the individual forms. The user guidance documents and forms are found on the GEM$ homepage under DESE Resources. These forms can be accessed without logging in to the system.

Last Updated: May 19, 2025