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Developing Your Title IV-A Program Activities

NH Title IV-A Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grant Program

This section of the toolkit will guide you through the process of developing activities based on your needs and your funding allotment. All activities should be developed to produce an outcome that meets a documented need, and evaluation for effectiveness should be designed into the application. The plan should include what data will be collected, how it will be collected, and how it will be interpreted. Districts will need to report on the effectiveness of their Title IV-A program at the end of the grant cycle.

Overview

The Title IV, Part A Student Support and Academic Enrichment (SSAE) program is intended to help increase the capacity of State educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), schools, and local communities to:

  1. provide all students with access to a well-rounded education,
  2. improve school conditions for student learning, and
  3. improve the use of technology in order to improve the academic achievement and digital literacy of all students.
An basic overview of the Process can be seen in this slide deck.

Check Your Allocation

Your district allocations can be found on the chart below.

Some Advice on Allowability

Federal guidance on allowability asks that these four steps be considered: 

  1. Determine if the proposed activity was informed by an assessment of need (a comprehensive needs assessment is required for LEAs with an allocation of at least $30,000), stakeholder engagement, and prioritization of schools.
  2. Confirm whether the proposed activity is consistent with the purposes of at least one of the three content areas in the Title IV-A program (well-rounded education in ESEA Section 4107, safe and healthy students in ESEA Section 4108, or the effective use of technology in ESEA Section 4109).
  3. Assuming that the activity is consistent with the purposes of one of the three content areas, as applicable, determine the allowability of costs in accordance with the cost principles in the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) of 2 CFR Part 200, Subpart E. Specifically, the cost of an activity is allowable under the Title IV-A program if it is reasonable and necessary for performance of the grant (i.e., it is of a type generally recognized as ordinary and necessary for operation of the grant) and allocable to the grant (i.e., it is chargeable to the grant award in proportion to the benefits received by the grant award as a result of the cost). Also, because Section 4110 of the ESEA prohibits supplanting, the proposed use of funds for the activity must supplement, and not supplant, other state or local funds that would otherwise be used to pay for the allowable activity.
  4. Finally, ensure that the activity is not one of the prohibited activities in ESEA Section 4001(b) or Section 8526, as amended by the ESSA.
Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Uniform Federal Grant Guidance

Determine Your Needs

Grant Allocation is between $10,000 and $29,999 --> You do not have to complete a comprehensive Needs Assessment, but you are responsible for demonstrating need for the activities in your Title IV-A program. The demonstrated needs should be the basis for your proposed outcomes and activities.

Grant Allocation is greater or equal to $30,000 --> You must complete a comprehensive District Needs Assessment, and you are responsible for demonstrating need for the activities in your Title IV-A program. The demonstrated needs should be the basis for your proposed outcomes and activities. Your needs assessment and results should be uploaded into the Grants Management System.

Title IV-A Program Development Process

Your Stakeholder Team should drive the development of your entire Title IV-A program. Whether you focus on one need or several, your Title IV-A Stakeholder Team should conduct a needs assessment, identify and prioritize which of your needs they want to address through Title IV-A supplemental student programs. Then, look at development of your program as a backward design process.
  • Priority - The most important needs of your most at risk schools or students.
First, you start with your determined needs.

The Title IV-A Stakeholder Team discusses the student needs, separates out those that fit into one or more of the Title IV-A categories, prioritizes them, so that the most important ones are considered first.

Then, you decide what outcomes, or final result, would help address or meet those determined needs. Once you determine the anticipated outcome that addresses the need, then explore what you could do to create that outcome. Develop a measurement tool that you could use to determine whether you have meet your outcome.
  • Activity - A supplemental student centered program designed to meet the most important need and produce the desired outcome.
Fully develop the activities so that it is clear what the program is, when it will operate, and who it will serve. These paramneters will allow you to collect the data that demonstrates that your activity produced the outcome.
Grant reviewers must ensure that LEAs clearly identify Performance Measurements and Outcomes based upon the following definitions and guidelines:

  • Performance Measurement - a performance measurement is a tool that can be used to collect data on a particular objective.Remember that your intention is to demonstrate that your activity produced your outcome. So, while your data collection can include summative assessments for student achievement, you also need to collect data on the activity itself to have evidence that the activity impacted students.

Examples of performance measurements may include, but are not limited to:

  • NH State Assessment
  • NAEP; NWEA; AIMSWEB
  • Behavior tracking system
  • Attendance tracking system
  • Grades and/or report cards
  • Student participation and/or engagement records
  • Student and/or Teacher Surveys
  • Student work and/or Teacher lessons
  • Outcome - An outcome is data that have been collected by one or more performance measurement tools.
Examples of outcomes may include:
  • 15% of the 5th graders tested during an academic year showed progress on the NH State Assessment in mathematics.
  • High school dropout rates decreased by 28% over a two-year period.
  • Surveys of family members showed a 31% increase in feelings of positive engagement with the school district as a result of family literacy nights.
Then, figure out how the budget necessary to successfully implement the activity in order to maximize your success, to the best of your ability. All budgeted items should have an intended use in the program and that use should be described in the Activity section.

It's best to develop your entire Title IV-A Program first, and then enter it into the grants management system as an entire program. This makes it easier to check the budget and for reviewers to assess and approve your program. This is especially true if your allocation is $30,000 or more where you have to use all three funding categories in your program. In order to best coordinate your program and budget in a meaningful way, it is best to plan it all out first, down to the budget for each activity. Then, add it into the grants management system.

Evidence Based Practices

What Works Clearinghouse

The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) is a central and trusted source of scientific evidence on education programs, products, practices, and policies. WWC reviews the research, determines which studies meet rigorous standards, and summarizes the findings. They focus on high-quality research that determines what works in education. Not all education research is equal. WWC can help identify well-designed studies, trustworthy research, and meaningful findings that inform decisions and improve student outcomes.
Use the What Works Clearinghouse resources.

Accessing the Department of Education's Educator Resource Portal

Access is provided free to New Hampshire public school educators, an official school email address is required for registration. Click "login" and signup using your school email address, if you have not already established a login. Watch the video below for details.



Login to the Department of Education's Educator Resource Portal .

Develop Your Activities

Grant Allocation is between $10,000 and $29,999 --> You can use a single category, or any combination, for your Title IV-A Program activities.

Grant Allocation is greater or equal to $30,000 --> You must use all three categories for your Title IV-A Program activities. Your budget must be distributed into those categories in the following way:

  • At least 20% for Well Rounded Educational Opportunities.
  • At least 20% for Safe and Healthy Students.
  • Some amount dedicated to Effective Use of Technology. Not more than 15% of the Effective Use of Technology budget can be used to purchase hardware or software. Professional development activities are the main focus of this category.
Resources for each category can be found on these pages: Note: The cost principles set out the basic guidelines to test the allowability of costs are outlined in Tests of Cost Allowability for Federal Grants. To be allowable under federal awards, costs must meet every one of the criteria. Reasonable people may have different concepts of what is a necessary cost. The "Prudent Person" Rule makes it clear that to be reasonable, a cost may not be more than a "prudent person" would spend in its nature and amount at the time of the decision.

Resource and Reading Links

Resources for developing Well Rounded Educational Opportunities https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vRfnjwdm5sgwUjDzHI25rqnuMhGQ950lUQMVOsPoh9t6XWFuyvpombICkn_QhAxgs52ialeDEMMuQvg/pub

Resources for developing Safe and Healthy Schools and Students https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTWw_tyjrUvSwpVKdfSYvBF0lvrtlK7NzHWLpLFCGBPpUCN-o0CxGC9kzTE-0gTgPHmW9zUl8Q_fLTX/pub

Resources for developing the Effective Use of Technology https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vR4M-ZI2qSjMddFTaQx82NySdiadqmjH9c3-84wDZJ3ZEqhfCGR8emM8Ws3bB1DaUZ8cYGtAxkE6zAk/pub

Download Areas in the Arts to Explore in your Needs Assessment

Download Areas in Physical Education to Explore in your Needs Assessment

Tests of Cost Allowability for Federal Grants http://yellowbook-cpe.com/chapter-2-tests-of-cost-allowability-for-federal-grants.html

NH Educator Resources Portal (EBSCO) https://nheducatorresources.com/

Accessing the Portal Video (You Tube) https://youtu.be/UxIjz9Ru6t0

 

Top Home Introduction Overview Needs Activities Application Help Documents Reporting Understanding Title IV-A Course

Last updated January 30, 2023

The Titile IV-A Project Planning Toolkit is supported by New Hampshire EdTech at the New Hampshire Department of Education.