Title I, 1003 School Improvement Funding – Important Updates

Title I, 1003 School Improvement Funding – Important Updates

September 13, 2021 | Grants Management

Did your charter district “opt in” to continue receiving Title I, 1003 School Improvement funds for 2021-22? Due to the pandemic and ratings being suspended, TEA made some changes with school improvement funding. A large chunk went to the ESF Focused Support Grant that was competitive. This pulled off a large amount of funds and reduced the amounts left in Title I SIG grants that are non-competitive. CSS does have important updates for the Title I SIG grant, so please keep reading if this pertains to you.

CSS provides assistance to all our clients in need of school improvement, and our team consists of experts on the Title I SIG grant application in particular. CSS will work in conjunction with your ESC school improvement team to plan your funds and improve your program.

Base Amount:

The Title I SIG grant amount was changed from $10,000 per “comprehensive” school to $14,285 per eligible campus.  The grant will open on Sept 13, 2021 to be able to apply for these funds.  Carry over of unspent funds from 2020-21 will not happen until Dec 17, 2021 at which time an amendment will be required.

Deadlines:

  • October 1 – First TIP submission is due in ISAM using the new 806 Technologies template (this due date is before the grant submission due date)
  • November 12 – Deadline to submit Title I 1003 SIG Grant

Targeted Improvement Plans (TIP plans) and 806 Technologies:

If you use Plan4Learning for your regular CIP’s, the TIP plan in ISAM is supposed to sync with it.  This is what Alice Keller with TEA explained at a webinar held on 9/7/21.  Please click here for a recording and/or slides of the webinar:  https://tea.texas.gov/student-assessment/monitoring-and-interventions/school-improvement/lea-grants

Funding caps:

  • 50% limit of total grant amount to funds reserved at the LEA level
  • 60% limit of total grant amount on payroll 6100

Needs and Data:

The intent of school improvement funds is to improve student achievement on State assessments in Reading and Math so that the campus may exit Comprehensive identification status.  Some campuses may be identified based on graduation rate, so funding may be directed towards those efforts as well.  The 2019 state  Accountability Reports are the last data set with full ratings.  Reports for 2019-20 and 2020-21 were issued, but with limited data due to the pandemic.

School Improvement Website:

https://tea.texas.gov/student-assessment/monitoring-and-interventions/school-improvement

Campuses identified for comprehensive support and improvement, targeted support and improvement, and additional targeted support in 2019 will maintain that label and interventions for 2021-2022. Campuses may exit if their identification was on graduation rate by itself, and the rate has improved for all student groups to 67% or higher.

Failed to opt in?

Please contact Alice Keller, M.Ed., School Improvement Grant Specialist at TEA here: alice.keller@tea.texas.gov

Have questions or need assistance?

Please contact Charter School Success.

Would you like to discuss?

Visit the Charter School Community Roundtable, where you can ask questions, get answers and discuss this topic now.