Federal Programs�Coffee Chat

JUNE 29, 2022

AGENDA

• Grant Updates & Reminders
• FY23 Title I, Title II, and Title IV Applications
• Impact Statements for Title I, II, and IV

Grant Updates and Reminders

AMENDMENT UPDATES

• Schools will have two opportunities to mend grants each year.
• September 15^th
• February 15^th

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• September 15, 2022 is the next and LAST opportunity to amend FY22 grants and ESSER II.

IMPORTANT FISCAL DATES TO REMEMBER

• Current Fiscal Year: July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022
• June 30, 2022: Last day to expend federal funds for expiring grants
• June 30, 2022: Goods and services must be received by June 30^th
• The school can pay for those items after June 30th, but keep in mind that all claims are due by July 10th. It is best practice not to order any supplies and materials between April and June to ensure that students are benefiting from those goods and services.
• July 10, 2022: Last day to submit claims for expiring grants and all expenditures for the current fiscal year for other federal grants (July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2022)
• Don’t forget that schools can submit for those June salaries paid in July. Those can be accrued back to the FY22 fiscal year.

EPICENTER�REIMBURSEMENT �REJECTIONS

• Pay close attention to rejection emails
• Recommend you review rejections in Epicenter daily to ensure that all rejections are resubmitted
• Directions:
• Go to Document Center
• Click on search icon on the right side of screen
• Click on Submission Types, open Schools folder, open folder for the grant submissions you want to view, then check the box of all reimbursement types
• Under Submission Status, click on All to uncheck the box, then select Rejected, and then select Apply
• Rejections will begin to have a 24-hour turnaround time beginning July 10^th!
• The district is not responsible for rejections that are not resubmitted by schools. The SCDE has a strict deadline for end of year claims.

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QUESTIONS

END OF YEAR IMPACT STATEMENTS

• Title I – Due July 1st for 2021-2022 school year
• NEW Title II – Due September 1^st for 2021-2022 school year
• NEW Title IV – Due September 1^st for 2021-2022 school year
• SCDE Monitoring Visit expected in November 2022 – Auditors will be looking for evidence of how schools have used federal funds to impact student achievement.
• Title I Impact Statement template
• Title II Impact Statement template
• Title IV Impact Statement template

END OF YEAR IMPACT STATEMENTS

END OF YEAR IMPACT STATEMENTS

• Directions: Using the information gathered above, please provide a written summary of how the activities were used to impact student achievement during the 2021-2022 school year. Be sure to discuss the evaluation tool that was used to determine the impact of student achievement, the results of each evaluation, and how those results were used to determine next steps. Keep in mind that the summary statement should be written for all stakeholders in mind, including board members, teachers, parents, students, the business community, and others.

QUESTIONS

2022-2023 �Federal Program Planning��Title I, Title II, & Title IV�Applications

FY23 PRELIMINARY TITLE I, II, & IV APPLICATIONS

Title I

• District will serve schools at 60% or above as 2022-2023 Title I schools.
• CNA & Applications due June 8^th in Epicenter
• Due to SCDE July 1^st

Title II

• All schools will be served
• CNA & Applications due in Epicenter July 8^th
• Due to SCDE July 31^st

Title IV

• Title I schools will be served
• CNA & Application due August 8^th
• Due to SCDE August 31^st

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FY23 TITLE II NEXT STEPS

Next Steps 

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1. Finalize the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA):  Please make final adjustments to your school's FY23 Title II Comprehensive Needs Assessment.  Click here to access the Comprehensive Needs Assessment template.  Note:  Title I schools may use the same needs assessment for Title I and Title II.  Just be sure to upload the CNA with the budget file.

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• Finalize the Title II Budget:  Please use the Title II budget template located here to create the Title I budget based on preliminary allocations. 

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• Review Activity Descriptions - Please be sure to include as many details as possible in the activity descriptions to avoid rejections.    Answer as many of the who, what, when, where, how, and why questions as possible and include exact expenditures.  Tip:  Type the activity in a word document and then copy and paste to cells in the excel sheet application. 

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• Collaborate with School Finance Office:  Before submitting the plan in Epicenter, please meet with your school's finance office to ensure budget codes are correct.  Be sure to include details, such as the total salary and portion paid from federal funds, details about whether the activity is a contracted service or paid from school's payroll system, and other details that will help to avoid issues with reimbursements.  Keep in mind that the state department reviewer needs enough details to determine if the activity is allowable, allocable, necessary, and reasonable.  For more information, please refer to the training PPT from May's Coffee Chat here.

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• Submit Needs Assessment and Budget in Epicenter:  Due July 8th 

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• Submit Title II Planning Meeting Documentation in Epicenter:  Due July 8^th

Click here to access additional Title II resources, such as allowable and non-allowable activities.  As always, please contact me if you have additional questions. 

IS THIS PURCHASE ALLOWABLE?

• Expenses charged to a federal award must meet the following allowability criteria:
• The costs must be reasonable.
• The costs must be given consistent treatment through application of those generally accepted accounting principles appropriate to the circumstances.
• The costs must conform to any limitations or exclusions set forth in the sponsored agreement or in the Federal Cost Principles (OMB Uniform Guidance §200.403).

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IS THE PURCHASE REASONABLE AND NECESSARY?

• Would a prudent person pay this amount for this item?
• If it were published on the front page of the local newspaper, would that be okay with you?
• Is the cost necessary for the appropriate and efficient performance and administration of the Federal award?
• Is the price of the goods or services comparable from multiple vendors/sources that have no vested interest or relationship to the Award or to the person involved in the purchase?
• Have the individuals incurring this cost acted with due prudence (discretion and good sense) in the circumstances? Have they considered their responsibilities to the school, its employees and students, the federal government, and the public at large?
• My Favorite - Follow the “Granny” Rule: If I can’t explain the purchase to my Granny without getting one of those “looks” and a stern talking to, it probably isn’t reasonable. ☺

TIPS FOR WRITING ACTIVITY DESCRIPTIONS

• Answer the who, what, when, where, how, and why questions.
• Be very specific.
• Don’t leave the reader wondering what the school is paying for in the activity.
• Supplies and materials – List all examples that may be purchased, and make sure they are allowable.
• Salary vs. contracted service?
• Use complete sentences to thoroughly explain purposes
• Use bullets where appropriate to clarify expenses
• Use proper grammar
• Suggestion: Type in word document and then copy and paste into cells on excel sheet
• Note: Tracie will send an application template with the preliminary allocation notice.

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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

• Who is attending the professional development?
• What is the exact title of the PD?
• When is the PD being held? (Month, Date, and Year)
• Where is the PD being held? (City and State)
• How is the PD being held?
• Is this a conference?
• Is this an in-house PD being held at the school, and a contractor is providing the PD?
• How will the learning be measured?
• Why is the professional development being held? (Connect to the needs assessment)

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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ��EXAMPLE

The district will send two district staff members from the Federal Programs Office to the National Association of Federal Education Program Administrators (NAFEPA) Conference in Washington, D.C. in March of 2023. Participants will get the most up-to-date information to help support school leaders and coordinators in fulfilling the requirements as administrators of federal education programs. Impact will be measured through school site visits and compliance review.

Expenditures will include the following:

• Registration: $645 x 2 participants = $1290
• Flight: $658 x 2 participants = $1316
• Parking: $12 per day x 3 days x 2 cars = $72
• Hotel: $313/night Conference Hotel Rate with taxes x 2 rooms x 2 nights = $1252 (The GSA rate is $258 per night, but the conference hotel rate will save on travel expenses.)
• Meals: $50 out-of-state rate per day per diem x 2 participants x 3 days = $300
• Total: $4230

RATES

• Use GSA rate for hotel https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/per-diem-rates
• Use in-state or out-of-state rates for meal reimbursements (receipts are not required)
• In-State:  $8 (breakfast), $10 (lunch), $17 (dinner)
• Out-of-State:  $10 (breakfast), $15 (lunch), $25 (dinner)
• Use actual costs for flights
• Due to the rise in fuel costs, the IRS has increased the mileage rate from $0.585 to $0.625 per mile.

SALARY AND CONTRACTED SERVICE ACTIVITIES

Is the following activity a salary or a contracted service?

To support well-rounded educational opportunities, the school will provide music therapy sessions, tailored around existing curriculum and lesson plans, in all classrooms. Funding will provide a total of 45 (30 min) group music therapy sessions. Students at the school will gain increased cognitive, communication, socialization, fine/gross motor and self-calming skills. Music therapist and teachers will develop goals centered around existing curriculum and lesson plans. Goals and outcomes will be documented in a clinical service note for each session and final summary of each classroom's outcomes.

SALARY AND CONTRACTED SERVICES

Example of activity that needs revisions:

An Instructional Coach will provide instructional support for all teachers in kindergarten through 9^th grades providing one-on-one sessions, lesson reviews, and helping to strategize to meet student needs. The Instructional Coach will also oversee middle and high school roll out, maintaining curriculum vertical alignment as the school rolls out an additional grade each year.

Questions to Consider

• Is this a salary or contracted service?
• If salary, is this a 1.0 FTE?
• What is the total salary for this position? How much of the salary is being funded through this grant?
• Can the program manager determine from this activity if this person would need a semi-annual or PARS?

MATCHING ACTIVITIES TO BUDGET CODES

BETTER…

• The school contract with an Instructional Coach to provide instructional support for all teachers in kindergarten through 9^th grades providing one-on-one sessions, lesson reviews, and helping to strategize to meet student needs. The Instructional Coach will also oversee middle and high school roll out, maintaining curriculum vertical alignment as the school rolls out an additional grade each year. *Object code of 300 for contracted service.

OR

• The school will hire a 1.0 FTE Instructional Coach to provide instructional support for all teachers in kindergarten through 9^th grades providing one-on-one sessions, lesson reviews, and helping to strategize to meet student needs. The Instructional Coach will also oversee middle and high school roll out, maintaining curriculum vertical alignment as the school rolls out an additional grade each year. Total Salary = $60,000 (Title I will fund $39,263.23 of the total salary. The remainder will be funded with general funds.) *Object code of 100 for salary.

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• Click here to access the Quick Guide to Function and Object Codes.

SUPPLIES AND MATERIALS

• Who will be using the supplies and materials?
• What specific supplies and materials will be purchased?
• When are the supplies being used?
• Where are the supplies being used?
• How are the supplies being used?
• Why is there a need for the supplies?
• How will the use of the supplies impact student learning?

SUPPLIES AND MATERIALS ��EXAMPLES

• The school will provide ELA, Math, Science, and Social Studies instructional material and supplies for teachers and students throughout the school year for the enhancement of teaching and learning. The supplies will be used to support and increase student achievement in grades K-8 in the subjects of Reading, Math, Science, and Social Studies, and Writing. Supplemental instructional materials will include educational games, rulers, protractors, compasses, flashcards, math manipulatives, glue sticks, content area workbooks, molding clay, canvas, graph paper, notecards, storage bags, STEAM supplies, poster paper, notebooks, paper, colored paper, binders, dividers, supplemental workbooks, dry erase markers, markers, chart paper, folders, post it notes, highlighters, and any additional instructional material or resources deemed appropriate to enhance classroom instruction.
• The school will provide supplemental enrichment materials in grades K-8 to enhance student learning with classroom magazines (one subscription per classroom per year), such as Scholastic, Time Jr, Scholastic Scope, Stories Weekly, Social Studies Weekly, My Big Backyard, and Science Spin (approximately $10 per student for 450 students).

SUPPLIES AND MATERIALS��EXAMPLE

• The school will hold parent and family engagement events, such as Math Night, Literacy Night, Annual Title I Meeting, Doughnuts for Dads, Muffins for Moms, Goodies for Grands, Watch D.O.G. Program, Veteran's Day Program, and monthly other academic Family Engagement Nights. The purpose of these events is to provide parents and families with information on the level of achievement of their child(ren), involve all parents in the planning, review, and improvement of school programs, and engage parents and families in their child’s learning. Expenditures will include refreshments (average of $2.50-$5.00 per person) and supplies, such as printer ink, copy paper, construction paper, Post-It notes, chart paper, chart markers, pens, index cards, math and science manipulatives for sharing with parents how to help with learning at home and any additional reasonable instructional material or resources deemed appropriate to enhance the purpose of the parent and family engagement event. The average attendance is 200 - 250 per event.

RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION BONUSES

• Rules/Regs: Retention stipends can be given to highly effective teachers. Highly effective teachers are teachers who have received a MET rating on their teacher evaluation.
• Must include a copy of the school’s Recruitment/Retention Bonus Policy
• Example: All teachers will receive a retention bonus​ for committing to return for the 2022-2023 school year.  Teachers will be required to return the bonus if they do not fulfill the contract.  The amount of $21,918.50 allocated in this activity will be distributed evenly to teachers who return to the school for the 2022-2023 school year.  For example, should all 30 teachers return, they would each receive $730.62 ($21,918.50 divided by 30 = $730.62).  Should only 15 teachers return, each teacher would receive $1,461.23 ($21,918.50 divided by 15 = $1,461.23). 

QUESTIONS

RESOURCES

• SCPCSD Federal Programs Website
• Title I
• Title II
• Title IV
• SCPCSD Federal Programs Comprehensive Needs Assessment Template
• Allowable Use of Funds Guidance

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CONTACTS

Tracie M. Sweet

Director of Federal Programs

Phone: 803-960-8609

Email: tsweet@sccharter.org

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Becky Huggins

COVID Impact Coordinator

Phone: 803-608-1091

Email: rhuggins@sccharter.org

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Tatiana Velez

Federal Programs Assistant

Phone: 803-212-8326

Email: tvelez@sccharter.org

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Please complete the evaluation survey here.