Creating a Title III Program that Meets Federal Requirements - Webinar for WI Title III Network

1. Creating a Title III Program that Meets Federal Requirements - Webinar for WI Title III Network Millie Bentley-Memon, Ph.D. Title III Group, US Department of Education With Supreet Anand, Group Leader, Title III Group Tuesday, April 13, 2010

2. US Department of Education’s (ED) Theory of Action for Reform Pillars of Reform ESEA Priority Areas Fosters… Results in… Increased Student Achievement Rigorous Standards & Assessments College and Career Ready Students Great Teachers & Leaders Great Teachers and Leaders in Every School Effective Teaching & Learning Achievement Gap Closing Effective Use of Data Equity and Opportunity for all Students Increased Graduation and College Enrollment Rates Turning Around Low Achieving Schools Raise the Bar and Reward Excellence

3. ELP Assessments and Accountability Measure growth towards attainment of language proficiency Valid and Reliable Instruments ELP Assessments Aligned to ELP Standards ELP Standards Linked to Content Standards Effective Use of Native Language Assessments Statewide Common Standards, Assessments, Identification and Exit Criteria

4. Update – Reauthorization Workand 2011 Education Budget http://www.ed.gov/blog/2010/01/the-presidents-cabinet-reports-to-you/

5. Title III – A Supplemental Program to Serve English Learners Title III-funded activities instructional program/ service required by State and local laws/regulations instructional program/service provided by the district to all students instructional program/service required by Federal laws/regulations

6. Building Blocks to an Effective Title III Program that Meets Title III Requirements high-quality language instruction educational program high-quality professional development

7. Building Blocks to an Effective Title III Program that Meets Title III Requirements • students • supplementary activities • (with expenditures that are reasonable, allowable, • and allocable) high-quality language instruction educational program professional development

8. Students Served Under Title III: • Students in grades K-12 identified as limited English proficient (LEP) based on the State English language proficiency (ELP) assessment. - Students identified and placed using valid measures of English language proficiency – not surname or language minority status (section 3302(f) of the ESEA) • LEP students enrolled in private schools served by the local educational agency (LEA). - The LEA is responsible for assisting private schools with identifying these students, if needed. (section 9501(a)) (*Note – Title III funds may be used for ELP assessment of LEP students enrolled in private schools, but not in public schools.)

9. Parent Refusal • Refusal of Title III services – Parents have the right to immediately remove their child from a Title III program, decline Title III services, or to choose another program or method of instruction, if available. (section 3302(a)(8)) Note that the LEA is still responsible for meeting the child’s educational needs and for ensuring that Lau requirements are met. • ELP Assessment - All LEP students in grades K-12 in the State should be annually assessed for English language proficiency. (sections 1111(b)(7) & 3113(b)(3)(D) of the ESEA)

10. Federal Criteria for Title III Activities Costs must be… reasonable A cost is reasonable if, in its nature and amount, it does not exceed that which would be incurred by a prudent person under the circumstances prevailing at the time the decision was made to incur the cost. allocable A cost is allocable to a cost objective if the goods or services involved are chargeable or assignable to the cost objective in accordance with the relative benefits received. allowable A cost is allowable if it is necessary and reasonable for proper and efficient performance of the award and allocable to the award. (OMB Circular A-87)

11. Examples of Unallowable Costs • Alcoholic beverages • Donations and contributions • Entertainment costs -tickets to shows or sports events, meals, lodging, rentals, transportation, gratuities • MAY be allowable – • reasonable lunch for participants in a professional development activity, if there is no other opportunity to eat, and the activity is all day • reasonable snacks for students for Title III-funded summer or after school programs, and transportation for these programs, if needed and not provided by the district • tickets and transportation for educational field trips, if part of high-quality language instruction educational program • reasonable refreshments for parent outreach activities

12. Title III 2% Cap on Administrative Costs • Districts have a limit of 2% of the Title III grant award for administration. (section 3115(b)) • Administration = administrative costs + indirect costs Examples of administrative costs: support staff, coordinators, & other personnel that perform administrative functions • Indirect costs = 1) incurred for a common or joint purpose benefiting more than one cost objective, and 2) not readily assignable to the cost objectives specifically benefitted Examples of indirect costs: percentage of cost to administer Federal programs across the district (OMB Circular A-87)

13. Supplement not Supplant Requirement - General Title III funds must be used to supplement the level of Federal, State and local funds that, in the absence of Title III funds, would have been expended for programs for LEP students and immigrant children and youth. (section 3115(g))

14. Supplement not Supplant Requirement - General The First Test of Supplanting: Required by Law The Department assumes supplanting exists if – A local educational agency (LEA) uses Title III funds to provide services that the LEA is required to make available under State or local laws, or other Federal laws.

15. Supplement not Supplant Requirement - General The Second Test of Supplanting: Prior Year The Department assumes supplanting exists if – An LEA uses Title III funds to provide services that the LEA provided in the prior year with State, local or other Federal funds. This assumption can be rebutted.

16. Supplement not Supplant – Rebuttal: The LEA would need to have contemporaneous records to confirm: • Budget cuts were made in a number of areas, not just services for LEP students; and, • There was in fact a reduced amount of State or local funds to pay for this activity/position; and • The LEA made the decision to eliminate the position/activity without taking into consideration Federal funds.

17. Supplement not Supplant Requirement Questions to Ask When Considering Whether Title III Funds Can be Used Without Violating the Supplement not Supplant Requirement 1. What is the instructional program/service provided to all students? 2. What does the LEA do to meet Lau requirements? 3. What services is the LEA required by other Federal, State, and local laws or regulations to provide? 4. Was the program/service previously provided with State, local, and Federal funds? Based on the answers to the above questions, would the proposed funds be used to provide an instructional program/service that is in addition to or supplemental to an instructional program/service that would otherwise be provided to LEP students (or be required to be provided by other laws/regulations) in the absence of a Title III grant?

18. State Law Mr. Gomez ? Supplemental Texts and Staff Summer School Bus Summer Program Mario Paraprofessionals Supplemental Instruction

19. Supplement not Supplant – ELP Assessment • Title I and Title III funds may not be used to administer State ELP assessments for progress because: • Title I does not specifically authorize this expenditure, which • is necessary because the requirement applies to all LEP • students (not just Title I students). • Use of Title III funds for this purpose would violate the • supplement not supplant requirement since the ELP • assessment is a requirement under Title I. • Neither Title I nor Title III funds may be used to develop or administer ELP assessments for identification and placement purposes, except that Title III funds may be used for identification & placement assessments for private schoolstudents (if the use of such funds would not supplant other Federal, State or local funds that may be used for such purposes.)

20. Public School ELP Progress Test ELP Placement Test

21. Private School Consultation State Law ELP Progress Test ELP Placement Test

22. Case Study Conversations

23. Case Study Conversations #1Use of Funds Review the following scenarios and apply the information discussed . Consider which questions could arise in each scenario, and a proposed answer. A) District A proposes using Title III funds to provide monthly dinners for its English language learner (ELL) parent advisory council. The amount proposed for these dinners is about 1/10 of the district’s Title III allocation. What questions could you ask regarding this proposed expenditure? How would the principles of allowable, allocable, and reasonable apply? B) District B wishes to use its Title III allocation to pay the salary of its ELL administrator. Is this a permissible use of Title III funds? Why or why not?

24. Case Study Conversations #1Use of Funds • Review the following scenarios and apply the information discussed . Consider which questions could arise in each scenario, and a proposed answer. • C) District C proposes using its $147,000 Title III allocation as follows: • $20,000 to partially fund English as a second language (ESL) teachers who will be the primary providers of ESL instruction for the students that they service. • $50,000 for two paraprofessionals to deliver ESL instruction to LEP students in two of the district’s elementary schools. • $1,000 for interpreters to participate in parent conferences. • $1,000 to translate district documentation to increase school participation for LEP students and their families. • $75,000 for “ESL textbooks, software and other materials.” • What are the considerations when determining whether each expenditure • is allowable, allocable, and reasonable, and whether it is supplemental?

25. Building Blocks to an Effective Title III Program • students • supplementary activities high-quality language instruction educational program high-quality professional development

26. Provision of Title III Services to LEP Students in Private Schools • Districts must conduct timely and meaningful consultation with appropriate private school officials. - documented • Districts must provide educational services (not funds) to LEP children, their teachers, or other educational personnel in private schools that are located in the geographic area served by the district. (section 9501)

27. Provision of Title III Services to LEP Students in Private Schools Timely and meaningful consultation must include: • How the needs of the private school students will be identified. • The services the LEA will provide to meet the needs. • The amount of funding available to provide services. • How the services will be assessed. (section 9501(c))

28. Provision of Title III Services to LEP Students in Private Schools Title III funds may be used for the initial ELP assessments for private school students (in cases where the use of such funds would not supplant other Federal, State and/or local funds that may be used for such purposes or other legal requirements).

29. Provision of Title III Services to LEP Students in Private Schools Annual ELP assessments: Title III does not require LEAs to administer their State’s annual English language proficiency assessments for identified English language learners in private schools. However, LEAs are required under Title IX uniform provisions to consult with the private school officials about: • how the Title III, Part A services provided to private schools and teachers will be assessed, and • how the results of the assessment will be used to improve those services. (section 9501(c)(1)(D))

30. Case Study Conversations

31. Case Study Conversations #2Private Schools D) In order to fulfill its obligations with respect to private school students in the LEA, District D gives the private schools in the LEA a dollar amont of its allocation the per pupil Title III award amount per each LEP student. District D tells the schools they can use the dollar amount however they wish as long as the services are for the private schools’ LEP students. Private schools then secure reading services, textbooks, and other materials for the LEP students’ use, and submit invoices to the LEA that the LEA pays directly to the vendors (reading teacher, publisher, etc.). Does this practice satisfy Title III obligations for private school students? Why or why not? What questions arise from this scenario?

32. Case Study Conversations #2Private Schools E) District E asks the private school in the city of Edualia to report the number of LEP students that attend the private school, so that District E can determine who must be served in the private school. Is this an appropriate practice? Why/why not? District E then further determines, based upon the number of LEP students, what “supplies and materials will be provided to the private school in order to assist the private school staff in serving the LEP students in the private school.” Is this an appropriate practice? Why/Why not?

33. Questions and Answers

34. Resources • National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition: http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/ • Office of Management and Budget Circulars: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/rewrite/grants/grants_circulars.html • Title I fiscal guidance: http://www.ed.gov/programs/titleiparta/fiscalguid.doc • Office for Civil Rights, ELL Resources: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/ellresources.html