Title I, Part A of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) provides supplemental resources to local school districts to help provide all children significant opportunity to receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education, and to close educational achievement gaps.
Title I, Part A is one of four principal programs that are available to districts through formula grants under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the current reauthorization of ESEA. The other programs are Title II, Part A; Title III, Part A; and Title IV, Part A.
The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is guided by its educational vision where:
DESE partners with districts, schools, and programs to:
Cultivate systems to support the whole student and foster joyful, healthy, and supportive learning environments so that all students feel valued, connected, nourished, and ready to learn. Strategic Objective 1 — "Whole Student"
Promote deeper learning so that all students engage in grade-level work that is real-world, relevant, and interactive. Strategic Objective 2 — "Deeper Learning"
Develop and sustain a workforce that is diverse, culturally responsive, well-prepared, and committed to continuous improvement, so that all students have equitable access to effective educators. Strategic Objective 3 — "Diverse and Effective Workforce"
Applicants for this grant opportunity should be intentional in the use of grant funds to support at least one of these strategic objectives.
The priorities of Title I, Part A are to:
A district is eligible to receive funds based on criteria established by the United States Department of Education (USED). Grants are awarded to local school districts after the state reviews and approves a district's grant application.
Federal CFDA: 84.010 Title I, Part A: Improving Basic Programs Operated by Local School Districts
Federal grant funds must adhere to:
FY27 Fund Code 0305 Title I, Parts A & D District Allocations will be posted at Grant Allocations & Awards page when it becomes available.
FY27 Title I, Parts A & D Detailed Allocation Spreadsheet
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.
Funds may be used to provide academic, instructional, and support services for eligible students, professional development activities for staff, support for parent involvement activities, and the purchase of appropriate supplies and materials.
Upon Approval (No Earlier than 7/1/2026)* through 9/30/2028**
* 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 DESE receiving and approving an application submission. Funds cannot exceed the project duration end date. The Grant Award Notice (GAN) issued in GEM$ is the official award notice for grant funds.
**The obligation end date for these grant funds covers multiple state fiscal years. Grantees should obligate and expend grant funding throughout the grant lifecycle. Grant balances can be liquidated on this award through November 30, 2028, through the GEM$ reimbursement request process. Note: No more than 15% of the Title I award may be carried beyond 9/30/27, without a waiver of this statutory limit.
Grantees must file a Final Expenditure Report (FER) to close out the grant by December 31, 2028. Grantees may file FERs ahead of this deadline if grant funds have been paid in full across each section of the consolidated grant, or after the obligation end date has passed, whichever comes first. If grant funds are not liquidated by November 30, 2028, the FER filing can be used to claim final balances if it is submitted on or before December 31, 2028.
Strategy, Monitoring and Compliance/Federal Grant Programs
Federal Grant Programs
(781) 338-6230
Wednesday, September 9, 2026
FY27 Federal Grant Assurances — The FY27 Federal Grant Assurances Signature Pages (Pages i and ii only) completed and signed by the Superintendent/Executive Director and uploaded in GEM$ in the LEA Document Library under Assurances, in folder Federal Entitlement Grant Assurances. We cannot approve any federal entitlement grant without a signed, properly dated and uploaded Federal Grant Assurance signature page.
Title I Schoolwide Program Justification, Assurances, and Waiver Request (required for districts with new Schoolwide school programs and for existing Schoolwide school programs that have fallen below the required 40% poverty threshold.) If applicable, upload instructions may be found on the School Ranking Instructions and Waiver Uploads page in GEM$.
Title I, Part A Quick Reference Guide on allowable and unallowable costs
How Funds are Allocated to States, Districts, and Schools
ESSA Family Engagement Resources
Guidance on Private School Equitable Services under ESSA
Grants for Schools: Getting Them and Using Them, A Procedural Manual
Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR)
Note: Applicants may only legally claim expenses to the grant starting from the date of final DESE approval. The start date for the grant is the date on which the district submits substantially approvable budget and information for the grant. Therefore, to expedite approval, it is essential to have district staff that can be reached in July and August to respond to questions, as needed.
The FY2027 Fund Code 0305 Title I, Part A: Improving Basic Programs Operated by Local School Districts grant must be completed and submitted in the Grants for Education Management System (GEM$) .
Grant Submission at the LEA level requires roles to be established for Grant writer for the specific fund code, LEA fiscal representative for financial review/approval, and Superintendent/Chief Executive sign off. All 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.
1 ESEA encourages, and in select cases requires, states and districts to implement "evidence-based" practices, activities, strategies, and interventions with demonstrated evidence of effectiveness. Evidence-based practices refer to interventions for which there is evidence of significant positive impact that can be found in published research papers, literature reviews, or ESE research briefs. Alternately, evaluations of local practices that a district or state may be used to identify evidence-based practices with statistically significant positive impacts or other high quality research findings that indicate a strong likelihood that the interventions will have a positive impact on student outcomes. For more information on ESSA's evidence-based tiers, see the US Department of Education's Guidance . For more information on using, building, and sharing evidence to improve student outcomes, see information on DESE's "The How Do We Know Initiative."
Last Updated: May 22, 2026