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Grants and Other Financial Assistance Programs

FY2027: Massachusetts 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) – Supporting Additional Learning Time Grant (SALT) – for new sites

Fund Code: 0647

Purpose:

The purpose of this federally funded competitive grant program is to support implementation of out-of-school time (school year and summer) programming that contributes to deepening academic and social-emotional learning, through engaging project-based learning and enrichment opportunities that help build the knowledge and skills that prepare students to pursue postsecondary goals.

Priorities:

Contribute to improved school-day attendance and accelerate academic growth during out-of-school time by developing creative and innovative programming that is real-world, relevant, and interactive and inspires meaningful, sustained student engagement and attendance.

Extend school-day instruction and support accelerated academic growth through evidence-based instructional practices, including those supported through Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) . Provide learning experiences aligned with the Vision of a Massachusetts Graduate and the Department's Educational Vision, and build educator expertise to develop and lead these experiences in ways that drive participation and sustained student engagement. Programming should also cultivate a safe, healthy, joyful, and supportive learning environment that builds on students' strengths and assets.

Utilize data-informed decision-making to strengthen student outcomes and continuously improve programming. Use student-level academic data to inform program design that is responsive to students' needs and interests and supports deeper learning. Use school-day attendance and other pertinent data to target outreach and supports to students who can benefit most from additional learning time, with a primary focus on students attending Title I, Part A-eligible schools and historically marginalized student populations.

Implement family engagement strategies that strengthen students' learning and engagement by providing families of students served by the 21st CCLC program with meaningful opportunities to participate in their children's education, including literacy and related educational development.

Develop sustainable models for providing additional quality learning time by coordinating federal, state, and local resources to support the continuation and expansion of effective programming.

Prioritize resources for schools and communities where additional learning time can have the greatest impact. Competitive priority will be given to schools that are part of the Accelerated Achievement Initiative and those in the Strategic Transformation Region. Additional priority consideration will be given to schools eligible for Title I schoolwide programs and/or applicants that have not previously received 21st CCLC funding. Please refer to Addendum A – Additional Requirements and Competitive Priorities for additional information.

Eligibility:

Eligible applicants are public school districts, public charter schools, or collaboratives serving students in cities and towns with ≥ (at least) 20 percent of students who are low income (LI) as indicated at the Department's School and District Profiles page for 2025-2026.

and/or

Community-based organizations (CBOs), other public or private entities, or a consortium of two (2) or more of such agencies, organizations, or entities have a demonstrated partnership with a school(s) with = 20 percent of students who are LI, as indicated at the School and District Profiles page for 2025-2026 or through other research based quantitative data evidence.

An applicant may apply for:

  • Up to two (2) Schools/Sites — in districts/communities in which applicant and/or partnering schools have ≥ (greater or equal to) 40% of students that are LI. (Using the LI percentage from the School and District Profiles page for 2025-2026 of the school where students to be served attend.)

  • One (1) School/Site — in districts/communities in which applicant/partnering school between 20–39% of students who are LI.

Additional eligibility parameters:

Entities/Schools not currently funded that were a previous recipient of a 21st CCLC grant must be able to demonstrate what will be different about the program going forward.

Agencies and organizations other than a school district, city, or town:
Please refer to Addendum A Additional Requirements and Addendum E Documentation of Organizational Capacity that detail additional eligibility requirements outlined in Title IV, Part B of Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) legislation, section 4204(b)(2)(D)(i).

Funding Type:

Federal CFDA 84.287

Federal grant funds must adhere to:

  • UGG (2 CFR 200)
  • EDGAR As Applicable
  • EDGAR General Fiscal Administration 34 CFR Part 76

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:

A total of approximately $4,000,000 is projected to be available.

School Year and Summer

  • Up to $225,000 per site — For sites that will serve approximately 40–60+ students per day.
  • Up to $190,000 per site — For sites that will serve approximately 25–39 students per day.
  • Optional Additional Transportation Funds — Up to $25,000 per site to help support costs to transport students home during the school year and to and from summer programming. Note: does not include specialized transportation needs required by a student's Individualized Education Program (IEP) or transportation to any offsite locations or field experiences.

Please note all applications awarded funding are required to employ a full-time 21st CCLC coordinator who is responsible for the overall administration and implementation of grant funded programming and continuous program improvement efforts.

Note About Budgets: Applicants must submit a total budget for grant costs to support both a school year and summer program within the applicable total maximum allowable amounts noted above.

Per federal requirements, the minimum grant award amount is $50,000.

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.

Fund Use:

Funds may be used to support programming costs, including a required full-time coordinator, site facilitator(s), staff salaries/stipends, staff planning time as it relates to implementing grant funded programming, partner/provider contracts, instructional materials, an education liaison, and other expenses associated with implementing grant funded programming.

No more than 10% of the funds may be used for materials and supplies per applicant site, and up to 30% of the total award may be used for the program coordinator position. It is also recommended that up to 5% of the budget be set aside to support effective family engagement efforts. This may include a part-time Family Engagement Liaison if one does not currently exist.

Funds allocated under this federally funded grant program may be used only to supplement, not supplant, funds that local educational agencies, schools, and community-based organizations would otherwise expend for out-of-school time and/or extended learning opportunities. Funding may only be used to support approved 21st CCLC programing costs. Funding may not be used to support required academic/remedial or summer school or summer school-like models, current salaries, current transportation costs, or instructional materials already being used during the school day.

Applicants requesting indirect costs must have an approved rate issued by the Department. See Addendum A for more information.

Project Duration:

Upon Approval* – 8/31/2027
*Anticipated no earlier than 11/1/2026

Pending appropriation and the meeting of grant requirements, awarded grantees may be eligible for up to four (4) continuation grant(s) in fiscal year 2028 (FY28), FY29, FY30 and FY31.

Continued funding in FY28 and FY29 is contingent upon implementation of grant-required activities and submission of a continuation grant that demonstrates the following:

  • the ability to use data to inform and support continuous improvement;
  • minimal to no monitoring and compliance findings;
  • maintenance of grant-funded program attendance levels; and
  • annual submission of required information including mid-year and end-of-year report/continuation application.

Continued funding in FY30 and FY31 is contingent upon meeting the above noted requirements along with:

  • Quantitative and qualitative evidence that demonstrates continuous improvement efforts and meeting attendance benchmarks;
  • A five percent (5%) reduction in funding in each of the remaining years (FY30 & FY31);
  • Serving at least 50% of students that are LI;
  • Serving at least the percentage of students served by the school in at least two student groups – low Income and either special education or English learners;
  • Evidence that the grantee is working toward sustaining programming beyond the grant period; and
  • Department completion of a risk assessment that demonstrates grant requirements have been, on average, met or exceeded across the previous years of funding during this grant cycle.
Program Unit:

Student and Family Support

Contact:

Karyl Resnick

Date Due:

Friday, October 16, 2026

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

DESE Competitive Grant Submission Policy

All responses must be received by the due date listed above. Failure to do so will result in disqualification. Responses not received on time will not be reviewed. Applicants applying after the due date may be notified their application was received late and will not be reviewed. Applications must be submitted as directed in the Submissions Instructions below. Failure to do so may result in disqualification. If you need assistance with submitting your application, please reach out to the contact person listed on this funding opportunity.

Competitive grant applications are considered submitted when the Superintendent / Chief Executive approves the grant application in GEM$. In order to be considered for competitive funding, applicants must submit a grant application through the LEA Superintendent Approved stage by the due date listed in the RFP.

Required Forms:

All required program information and forms will be submitted through DESE's Grants for Education Management System (GEM$). See Submission Instructions for details.

Additional Information:
  • Select key grant implementation requirements:
    • Employ a full-time 21st CCLC Coordinator responsible for the administration and implementation of grant funded programming (may be supported partially or in full by grant funds).
    • At least 50 percent of the students served by 21st CCLC funds must be considered LI, and at minimum 21st CCLC sites must also serve a percentage of students equal to or greater than the percentage of students with disabilities and English learners served by the school during the school day.
    • 21st CCLC Coordinator and at least one educator from the awarded site is required to attend the Massachusetts 21st CCLC Winter Institute, typically held in early December.

  • Guidance on Private School Equitable Services under ESSA

  • Required Intent to Apply — Any entity that plans to apply for a 21st CCLC SALT grant (FC 0647) must submit an intent to apply by October 2, 2026. Submission of an intent to apply does not obligate the entity to submit a proposal.

  • Grant Planning Documents, Grant Addenda and Forms can be found on the 21st CCLC funding webpage under planning resources. Please note that all final documents and forms will be posted and submitted through GEM$. See Submission Instructions section for details.

  • Questions and Information Webinar: Due to the competitive nature of this grant program, all questions about the Funding Opportunity documents and process will be addressed during the Grant Information Webinar and Q & A sessions.

    • The Department will host a SALT Grant Informational Webinar on Thursday, September 24, 2026 from 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM to walk interested applicants through the RFP and respond to questions. You must register to receive the Zoom link. You may register up until the day of the information session. 21CCLC Information Session Registration Link

    • The Department will also host a four (4) 30-minute Question & Answer Sessions on Tuesday October 6th, Thursday October 8th, Tuesday October 13th, and Thursday October 15th all from 10:00 – 10:30 AM, to respond to questions. You must register to receive a Zoom link. You may register at any time. Attendees only need to register once and can choose one or more Q&A sessions to attend. 21CCLC SALT Grant Q & A Registration Link.

    • Note regarding use of artificial intelligence (AI): Applicants may use Artificial Intelligence AI as a supportive thought partner for brainstorming and outlining their application, provided it does not serve as a ghostwriter or a replacement for original human authorship. Direct copying and pasting from generative Artificial Intelligence AI tools is strongly discouraged. To maintain academic integrity, use of Artificial Intelligence AI must be clearly disclosed and properly cited, reflecting a commitment to transparency and active human oversight.

Submission Instructions:

The FY27 0647 Massachusetts 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) – Supporting Additional Learning Time Grant (SALT) – for new sites will be submitted in our GEM$ system.

Grants for Education Management System (GEM$)

New organizations that do not have an established LEA with DESE skip to Step 3.

Step 1: Establish and assign proper roles before the grant due date/time. 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 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.

Step 2: Submit the grant through all LEA steps in GEM$. There are three LEA steps a competitive grant must be submitted through by the due date and time to be considered for funding:

  • Grantwriter Submitted
  • LEA Fiscal Representative Approved
  • LEA Superintendent / Chief Executive Approved

Competitive grant applications are considered submitted once the grant application is submitted by the Superintendent or their designee through the "LEA Superintendent / Chief Executive Approved" step in GEM$. In order to be considered for competitive funding, applicants must submit a grant application through the LEA Superintendent Approved stage by the due date and time listed in the RFP. Please plan accordingly.

The Superintendent / Chief Executive Approved Step allows for the organization lead to review and approve the grant application. Removing the requirement for the Part I Standard Contract Form, this step signifies Superintendent /Chief Executive sign off. Any grant budget changes requiring signature, will re-execute this step when amended signifying the organization lead is approving these changes.

Step 3: (If applicable) New organizations request temporary organization access. New organizations are entities that have not been established as an LEA in GEM$. Entities that do not have an organization established in GEM$ must contact the DESE Program Unit issuing this grant at a minimum 5 business days prior to the grant due date for temporary organization access.

Temporary Access will need to be created by DESE before you can then assign the proper roles and submit the grant as outlined in Steps 1 and 2.

Failure to provide DESE with GEM$ Temp Organization Access Request at least 5 business days prior to the due date may result in not meeting the submission due date listed above. DESE cannot accept or review applications after the due date.

Last Updated: September 9, 2026

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