District Coordinators/Administrators Priority and Focus Schools Revised September 2012

Priority & Focus School Title I, Part A, Set-Asides and

Choice/Transfer OptionRequirements Under ESEA Waiver

District Coordinators/Administrators Priority and Focus Schools

Revised September 2012

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Today’s Presenters

Greg Olszta ConsultantOffice of Education Improvement & Innovation 517-241-4715 or [email protected]

Karen RupleManager, High Priority SchoolsOffice of Education Improvement & Innovation 517-335-4733 or [email protected]

Bill WittSupervisorOffice of Field Services517-373-3743 or [email protected]

Priority & Focus School Set-Asides

Choice/Transfer & Transportation

• The challenge begins…

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Priority & Focus Schools

• Title I schools identified for the 2012-2013 school year as Focus or Priority schools must implement Set-Asides and offer the Choice/Transfer option, and transportation for students whose parents elect to transfer them to another school…


• …that has made AYP in the 2011-2012 school year, and

• …which is not identified as a Priority or Focus school.

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• …both Targeted Assistance and Schoolwide schools must offer the Choice/Transfer option…

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• Funds not required to be obligated for Choice/Transfer must be spent…

• …on other required and district-selected interventions and must be implemented by those buildings and districts.

For Priority Schools

• District Title I Set-Aside Options:–Support of increased learning time

–Implementation of rapid turnaround strategies

–Professional learning for the Priority Schools(s) aligned with the needs

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For Priority Schools

• District Title I Set-Aside Options cont.–Release time for a teacher to provide

technical assistance for Transformation or Turnaround Plan and Improvement Plan writing

–Administration and progress monitoring of supplemental interim assessments

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For Focus Schools

• District Title I Set-Aside Options for Year One (10%):–Provide a multi-tiered system of suport

in Focus School(s)

–Professional Learning aligned with needs of Focus School(s)

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For Focus Schools

• District Title I Set-Aside Options for Year Two (15%) and Years Three and Four (20%):–Contract with a District Improvement

Facilitator (REQUIRED)

–Options from Year One

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Single Building Districts

• Single Building Districts are expected to set aside:–The required Title I district set-aside

AND

–The required Title I building set-aside

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Non-Title I Schools

• There is no obligation for non-Title I schools to set-aside any money for any of the options

• Districts and buildings could consider using their Title IIA monies to address the needs of Focus Schools

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Choice/Transfer Letters

• Choice/Transfer Option letters must be sent to all parents of known students in Priority and Focus school by August 21st.


• Notification letters to parents explain that the school has been identified as requiring improvement, and the Choice/Transfer school option available to students.

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• List available schools, not identified as Priority and/or Focus, to which students may transfer.


•Choice option schools must have also made AYP in the 2011-12 school year.

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• Letters must indicate that parents have at least 14 days to respond regarding the Choice/Transfer Option and school selection.

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• Letters note that If the district receives more applications than can be accommodated, priority will be given to the lowest-achieving children from low-income families.

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• Letters note that transportation to the schools may be paid for subject to certain cost limitations.


• In past years, the MDE provided advance Technical Assistance regarding Choice/Transfer letters informing parents about AYP, transfer options, transportation.

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• Due to the late approval of the Flexibility Waiver of the ESEA requirements, advance, hands-on assistance with the draft letters could not be provided by the MDE.


• Districts and schools have been sent draft template letters for use in completing letters to parents that include required information about Choice/Transfer and transportation.

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Choice/Transfer Requirements

• All districts with Title I Focus and/or Priority schools are required to continue transportation for students as long as the school is identified as Focus or Priority.

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• However, if a school is no longer identified as Priority or Focus, the student must be provided the opportunity to complete the highest grade level available in the Choice option school,

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• but, the obligation of the district to provide transportation ends at the end of the school year, if the school from which the student transferred is no longer identified as a Priority or Focus school.

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• The amount to be reserved as the Set-Aside obligation must be sufficient to support all previously approved transfer requests, as well as requests in the new school year.

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• The obligation of the district to provide transportation for a student that transferred continues so long as the student remains enrolled in the school and it is identified as Priority or Focus, but...

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…no longer holds if the student moves out of the district, if the district is a traditional district and not a PSA.

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Choice Transfer-PSAs

• If a PSA district, the student’s move does not affect the PSA’s responsibility to continue to provide transportation…so long as the student does not move outside of the boundaries of the ISD in which the school is located…

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…and so long as the PSA school is identified as Priority or Focus.

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• If a Choice/Transfer Option school is NOT available within the district…

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• …then written agreements with other district(s) within the ISD must be negotiated where possible to provide parents with Choice/Transfer Options.

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• If written agreements with other districts can NOT be obtained to offer parents Choice Option schools not identified as Priority/Focus, documentation of efforts to secure agreements must be maintained and provided to MDE upon request.

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Web Posting Requirements

• List of available schools to which eligible students may transfer and posted at least 14 days before the start of the school year

• Procedures and timelines for parents to apply for the Choice/Transfer options available and transportation available

Web Posting Requirements

• Copy of the Choice/Transfer Parent Request Form

• If the parent notification letter and attachments contain all of the information, then those documents will meet requirements

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Title I, Part A, Allocations

• Estimated 2012-13 allocations are now available on the MDE website and final allocation information will be provided to districts in October .

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What Do We Do Next?

• Fulfill your Choice/Transfer requests-include new and continuing student requests

• Determine how much of the required Set-Aside remains for other required services and interventions

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Unspent funds

• All Set-Aside funds from the Title I allocation must be spent on activities and interventions required for Priority and Focus schools. There will be no “unspent funds.”

Consolidated Application

• There is no longer an LEA Planning Cycle (LEAPC)

• The District Improvement Plan must be aligned with Consolidated Application budget

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• For subgroups of with N size 10 or more, achievement gaps must be identified and there must be specific objectives, strategies and activities addressing these gaps.

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• Submitted applications are being returned to districts.

• Districts are required to put in placeholder language for the set-asides.

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• The necessary detail will be filled in later during the December-January amendment period.

• Applications must be returned within two weeks in order to keep the original obligation date.

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• Single District Buildings must do both the district and building level set-asides.

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Priority Schools

• Districts with Priority Schools will put the following language under Function Code 271: 20% district set aside to meet Priority School requirements.

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Priority Schools - Continued

• For the building level Priority School budget, put the following under function code 221: 10% building set-aside for required priority school activities.

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Focus Schools

• Districts with Focus Schools will put the following language under Function Code 271: 10% district set aside to meet Focus School requirements.

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Focus Schools

• For each building level Focus school budget, put the following under function code 221: 10% building set-aside for required Focus School activities.

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Districts with Both Priority & Focus Schools

• Districts with both Priority & Focus Schools will put the following language under Function Code 271: 20% district set aside to meet Priority and Focus School requirements.

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Districts with Both Priority & Focus Schools

• For the building level budgets, Districts with both Priority & Focus Schools will put the following language under function code 221 (as appropriate): 10% building set-aside for required (Priority or Focus) School activities.

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Title I School Selection

• The Title I School Selection application must also be updated to include the set-asides.

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To Reiterate…

• These requirements apply only to Title I receiving schools. Non-Title I or Title I eligible/not receiving are not affected by these requirements.

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Contact Information

Choice/Transfer

Greg Olszta

Consultant-OEII

517-241-4715 or [email protected]

Focus Schools

Karen Ruple

Manager High Priority Schools-OEII

517-335-4733 or [email protected]

Consolidated Application/Set-Asides

Office of Field Services-Regional Consultant for the District

Documents

District Coordinators/Administrators Priority and Focus Schools Revised September 2012