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February 2024

FY25 CFA Opens in ePlan on March 1, 2024

Contact: [log in to unmask]

The FY25 Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) opens in ePlan on March 1, for local education agencies (LEAs) to begin work completing program details pages. Preliminary allocations will be loaded as soon as they are available. 
 
Please watch for a CFA Special Edition Federal Programs Update on March 1, which will share updated resources to help LEAs with completing the FY25 CFA.

English as a Second Language (ESL) Resources

Contact: [log in to unmask]

New and updated resources, listed below, are on ePlan > TDOE Resources > ESSA Information, Guidance, PPTs, & Webinars > Title III, Part A: English Language Acquisition to align with State Board Rule 0520-01-19.

• New: ESL Quarterly Monitoring Guidance
• ESL Manual
• ESL Identification and Screening for English Learners Guidance
• ESL Exit Process Guidance
• ESL Parent Notification Guidance 
• ESL Staffing Ratio Guidance

ESL Standards and Assessment Transition Updates

Contact: [log in to unmask] 

The department is pleased to announce changes to the Tennessee English Learner Proficiency Assessment starting in the 2024-25 school year.

As of July 1, 2024, Tennessee will be moving to ELPA21 for our English Learner Proficiency Screener and Assessment. Further details about the change from our current program (WIDA Screener) will be disseminated through District Testing Coordinators (DTCs), department newsletters (DTC and Title III), and webinars. On-demand online test administrator training will be an option for the training requirement.

Districts should continue to use the current WIDA Screener through June 30, 2024. Students who will be kindergarteners in the fall of 2024 must be screened with the ELPA21 screener after July 1. All English Learners will be assessed with ELPA21 in spring 2025.

Training will begin after the WIDA ACCESS testing window for the 2023-2024 school year is closed.

MEP Office Hours 

Contact: [log in to unmask] and [log in to unmask] 

The remaining Migrant Office Hours for this school year have been scheduled for March 7, April 4, and May 2. Migrant liaisons will receive new meeting invites for these via email.

Education Stabilization Fund: ESSERF Data Collection Now Open

Contact: Relief Coordinators 

LEAs that received Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act; ESSER 1.0), Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 (CRRSAA; ESSER 2.0), and American Rescue Plan (ARP ESSER; ESSER 3.0) funds must complete the annual federal and state data reporting requirements.

The ESSERF Data Collection instrument opened in ePlan on Wednesday, Feb. 14. The relief team recently conducted a webinar to share information and details about the data collection. LEAs can find a recording and slide deck in TDOE Resources.

The ESSERF Data Collection Instrument is due in ePlan on May 3. The Relief team will conduct office hours every Wednesday during the data collection window to provide technical assistance to LEAs. Please use this link to join and reach out to your relief coordinator for additional support.

Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Update Webinar

Contact: Relief Coordinators 

The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) provided a webinar and resources on Dec. 7, 2023, that highlighted important regulatory changes about the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Final Rule Provisions (revisions to 28 C.F.R., Parts 1,3, and 5).

As a reminder, any LEA that uses federal education funds to support a construction project, including minor remodeling, renovation, or repairs over $2,000, must include all applicable contract clauses found in 29 C.F.R. § 5.5. The LEA must also maintain contractor-certified payroll records and submit these records to the State.

For further information from the Dec. 7, 2023, webinar, please click the following:

• Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Webinar
• Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Slides
• Davis-Bacon Dec. 7 Webinar Q&A

ARP Homeless SEA and LEA ED Survey Results Released

Contact: [log in to unmask]

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has published the SEA and LEA American Rescue Plan Homeless Children and Youth (ARP-HCY) Survey Summaries on the ARP-HCY Resources webpage. The surveys were the initial phase of our ARP-HCY national study. This month, the ED team will reach out to some of you to recruit up to nine local liaisons to participate in qualitative case studies on the provision of wrap-around services and collaboration with community-based organizations (CBOs). 

Maximizing Credit Accrual and High School Completion for Students Experiencing Homelessness

Contact: [log in to unmask]

The McKinney-Vento Act contains several provisions that can reduce dropout rates by helping students remain in school and stay on track. First, the law requires that students experiencing homelessness who move be immediately enrolled at either the school of origin or the local attendance area school, based on the student’s best interest [McKinney-Vento Act § 722(g)(3)(B)]. An LEA is required to presume that keeping a student in the school of origin is in his or her best interest, unless remaining in the school of origin goes against the wishes of parents, guardians, or unaccompanied youth [McKinney-Vento Act § 722(g)(3)(B)(i)]. In addition to preventing students from dropping out of school, the enrollment provisions in the McKinney-Vento Act are critical, as high mobility and seat-time policies often cause students to lose valuable classroom time necessary to earn credits.

To find out more about supporting students experiencing homelessness, visit the National Center for Homeless Education.

Extended Learning Afterschool Programs (ELAP) Announcements

Contact: [log in to unmask]

• The Family Survey opened on Feb. 12, 2024. If you have not received the email with the survey link and site code(s), please reach out to the Social Work Office of Research and Public Service (SWORPS) Help Desk ([log in to unmask]). You can also email the help desk for an updated count of completed surveys every Monday.
• Initial emails explaining the Teacher Survey will be sent to all teacher email addresses in ELAP the week of March 4, 2024. The emails will come from [log in to unmask]. Please double-check the email addresses in ELAP and let your teachers know to look for the email. You can download this announcement to spread the word. Survey links to teachers will be sent out the week of March 11, 2024. As in previous years, SWORPS cannot share which teachers have completed the survey, but every Monday we will have an updated count of the number of completed surveys. You can email the SWORPS Help Desk ([log in to unmask]) weekly for the updated totals for your sites.
• The Student Survey will again be a sample of 50 centers. Selected programs will be notified individually the week of March 11, and the survey will open the week of March 25, 2024.
• SWORPS Office Hours will be held on March 12 at 9 a.m. CT and March 27, 2024, at 12 p.m. CT. We will discuss the Student Survey results from last year, provide technical assistance regarding local evaluation, and as always, answer your questions.
• The Next Data Quality Check is March 15, 2024, and will address entry of State Issued Student IDs and Free and Reduced Price Lunch (FRPL), Special Education, and EL status for all students.
• Please note that the University of Tennessee and the SWORPS Help Desk will be closed on March 29, 2024.

Extended Learning Office Hours

Contact: E[log in to unmask]

Extended Learning Office Hours will occur at least monthly, with additional sessions occurring as needed. Office hours are an opportunity for grantees to hear important announcements and reminders, receive professional development and technical assistance, and collaborate with other grantees. A tentative agenda for March and information on how to connect to the call are listed below.
 

ePlan Roles vs. Contacts

Contact: e[log in to unmask]

ePlan roles and contacts serve different functions. See the table below for a breakdown of the differences.

Tennessee Treasury Matching Grant Incentive Program

Contact: TIPS Program Administrator at (615) 253-2265 or [log in to unmask]

Tennessee Investments Preparing Scholars (TIPS) is a 4-to-1 matching grant program for qualifying families saving for college. The TIPS program encourages lower- to moderate-income families to take the first step in saving for the growing costs associated with post-secondary education by opening a TNStars College Savings 529 account. When a qualifying family opens a TNStars account and enrolls a beneficiary in the TIPS program, the state will provide a 4-to-1 match. That’s $100 for every $25 contributed by the account holder. Beneficiaries age 14 and younger can receive a lifetime maximum match of $1,500.
 
To qualify for TIPS, families must meet the household income eligibility requirements, which are currently set at up to 250 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Since the program launched in 2014, TIPS has awarded $1,054,612 in matching grants to 1,046 enrollees.
 
For more information regarding this matching grant program, you may visit the TIPS Program.

TDOE Announces School and District Designations for 2022-23 School Year

On Tuesday, February 20, the department announced school and district designations for the 2022-23 school year, including Reward schools, Exemplary districts, and In Need of Improvement districts. These designations are based on various performance indicators, including student achievement and growth.

Across the state, 400 schools, spanning 98 districts, received the Reward school designation; 12 districts received the Exemplary district designation; and seven districts received the In Need of Improvement designation. The complete list of district and school designations is available on the department‘s accountability webpage.

Reward schools, Exemplary districts, and In Need of Improvement districts were presented to and approved by the State Board of Education on February 16.

Districts and schools can use these customizable social media and newsletter graphics in various sizes to utilize in their own communications efforts. Learn more about school and district designations here.

TDOE Releases Fall 2023 ACT Senior Retake Data

On Wednesday, February 14, the department released data on the 2023 ACT Senior Retake, which provides public high school seniors with an additional opportunity to boost their score on the ACT for free. Thanks to the retake opportunity, the number of high school seniors who took the ACT in 2023 and are now eligible for the state HOPE Scholarship has increased to 24,623, representing one out of three seniors.

Tennessee leads the nation in ACT access, becoming the first state in the nation to offer public high school seniors the opportunity to take the ACT two times for free during normal school hours, and boasts a strong statewide ACT participation rate of 99% for the graduating class of 2023. Public school students test once in the spring of their junior year and then have an opportunity to retake the ACT in the fall of their senior year during normal school hours.

Across the state, over 423,000 students have participated in the retake opportunity since its inception in 2018. In fall 2023, 51,745 students participated in the retake opportunity and 77% of those students increased their superscore, the average of the highest sub-scores from each subject of all test attempts. Additionally, economically disadvantaged students increased their composite score by 2.02 points and superscore by 2.36 points and students with disabilities increased their composite score by 2.01 points and superscore by 2.35 points.

Learn more here.

Dates to Remember

Tomorrow, March 1

• FY25 CFA opens in ePlan; Federal Programs Update Special Edition released

March 4-5

• FPO Data Review  (data downloaded from EIS)

March 6-8

• FPO Data Review  (data tables emailed to LEAs)

April 1

• FY25 21st CCLC Cohort 24 Application due in ePlan

May 1

• FY25 CFA due in ePlan

May 3

• ESSERF Data Collection due in ePlan

ePlan Office Hours for LEA Users

Tuesdays from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. CT | 12 – 1 p.m. ET.
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

ESSER Office Hours

Wednesdays from 9 – 10 a.m. CT | 10 – 11 a.m. ET.
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

FPO Office Hours

Mondays from 12 – 1 p.m. CT | 1 – 2 p.m. ET 
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

IEP and Results-Based Monitoring Office Hours

Mondays from 1 – 2 p.m. CT | 2 – 3 p.m. ET.
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

McKinney-Vento & ARP Homeless Office Hours

The first Thursday of the month from 10 – 11 a.m. CT | 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. ET.
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

TDOE-DCS Foster Care Office Hours

The second Wednesday of each month from 1 – 2 p.m. CT | 2 – 3 p.m. ET.
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

Title I, Part C (Migrant Education Program) Office Hours

The first Thursday of the month from 1 – 2:30 p.m. CT | 2 – 3:30 p.m. ET.
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

Title III Office Hours

The last Monday of the month from 10 – 11:30 a.m. CT | 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. ET.
Dates and login information for FPO office hours can be found here.

Important Links

Tennessee Department of Education 
ePlan.tn.gov

In Case You Missed It:

January 2024 Federal Programs Updates Newsletter
December 2023 Federal Programs Updates Newsletter
November 2023 Federal Programs Updates Newsletter

ESEA & IDEA Divisional Coordinators

ESSER Relief Funding Coordinators

IEP Monitoring & Perkins V Specialists

Non-Traditional Educational Programs Contacts

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