This memo contains an attachment with the district's 1998-99 allocation for the Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development program, Title II of the Improving America's Schools Act (IASA). Also, attached is the Evaluation Report to report activities and expenditures from 1997-98 and to project professional development initiatives for the new year.
Listed are some major program guidelines that must be followed in the administration of the Eisenhower Professional Development Program.
INFORMATION SHEET
DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Authorized Activities: Each local educational district, school, or cooperative that receives funds under this program shall use such
funds for activities that give teachers and administrators the knowledge and skills to provide students with the opportunity to meet the Student Learning expectations as listed in the Arkansas Curriculum Frameworks.
Professional Development activities funded under this program shall meet the following criteria:
· Be tied to the Arkansas Curriculum Frameworks;
· Take into account recent research on teaching and learning;
· Provide professional development which incorporates effective strategies, techniques, methods and practices for meeting the educational needs of diverse groups of students, including girls and women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, limited English proficient individuals, and economically disadvantaged individuals;
· Include strong academic content and pedagogical components; and
· Be of sufficient intensity and duration to have a positive and lasting impact on the teacher's performance in the classroom.
Examples of Eligible Activities as described in the Act:
· Professional development for teams of teachers and where appropriate, administrators, pupil service personnel, or other staff from individual schools to support teaching consistent with the Arkansas Curriculum Frameworks.
· Support and time, which in the case of teachers may include released time with pay for teacher and where appropriate, pupil service personnel and other school staff to enable such teachers and staff to participate in mathematics and science subjects that are offered through professional associations, universities, and other providers.
· Activities that provide follow up for teachers who have participated in professional development activities that are designed to ensure that the knowledge and skills learned by the teacher are implemented in the classroom.
· Support for partnerships between schools, consortia of schools or local educational agencies, and institutions of higher education, supporting both academic and pedagogical training for current and pre-service teachers.
· Preparing teachers in the effective use of educational technology as instructional tools for increasing student understanding of mathematics and science.
· Professional development to ensure that girls and women, minorities, limited English proficient students, individuals with disabilities, and the economically disadvantaged have full opportunity to achieve the challenging State content standards.
· Providing financial or other incentives for teachers to become certified by nationally recognized professional teacher enhancement programs.
· Preparing teachers to work with parents and families on fostering student achievement in mathematics and science.
Special Provisions of the Legislation
LEA Consortia. Under Section 2204 of the act, any LEA receiving an Eisenhower Program allocation of less than $10,000 is required to form a consortium with at least one other entity receiving Eisenhower Program funds.
Waiver Provision. The State Education Agency may waive the consortium requirement when a local district is able to demonstrate that it can implement an effective program of professional development as required in the Act with limited funds. Consideration of a waiver will depend on the overall potential of the project to meet the determined professional development needs within the LEA; the remote location of a district making expenses of a cooperative project more costly or outcome less effective; or the extent to which project activities are supported by other local, state or federal funds.
Local Cost Sharing. Each local educational agency shall provide not less than 33% of the cost of the activities proposed under this part, excluding the cost of services to private school teachers.
Waiver of Cost Sharing. The State education agency may approve a waiver of the Local Cost Sharing requirement if a local education agency can demonstrate that such agency is unable to meet the 33% match requirement due to economic hardship and that compliance with such requirements would preclude such agency's participation in the program.
LEA Focus on School-Level Activities. At least 80% of the funds available to a LEA must be spent on school-level activities as determined by teachers and other staff through the needs assessment. No more than 20% of the funds may be used for district-wide activities including reasonable administrative expenses (generally not to exceed 5% of the total grant amount).
Materials. Eisenhower Program funds may be used to purchase supplies and materials that are necessary to conduct training activities. This does not include sets of materials for any individual teacher's classroom.
Other Subject Areas: The IASA provides for subject areas other than mathematics and science to be included in the program. The extent to which funds may be directed to activities involving teachers other than mathematics and science teachers is dependent on the level of funding at the national level. For the 1998-99 year, 25% of the funds may be directed to professional development in subject areas other than mathematics and science activities, which includes 7.5% that must be directed toward reading. The Department of Education has established a priority for K-4 through the Smart Start program. This program focuses on improving student performance in reading and mathematics. Districts are encouraged to use up to 25% of funds to support Smart Start's professional development activities.
Consortium. "Any local education agency that receives an allocation of less than $10,000 under this Title shall, …form a consortium with at least one other local agency or institution receiving assistance under the act." Refer to the Information Sheet for conditions and procedures under which this agreement may be waived.
Cost Sharing. Each local educational agency is required to provide not less than 33% of the cost of activities proposed under this Title, excluding the cost of service stop private school teachers. Refer to the Information sheet for conditions and procedures under which this requirement may be waived.
Allocation and Distribution of Funds
Allocations are based on two factors: 50% is distributed based on the total enrollment from public and participating private schools (where applicable), and 50% is distributed in the same proportion as funds received under Part A of Title I of the Improving America's School Act.
Funds must be distributed based on the schedule of activities. It is imperative that the proposal identifies, to the extent possible, activities that will be conducted during the year and that a cost be projected for each activity. The schedule of payments will be based on monthly needs to fund those activities.
Current grant awards extend through September 30, 1998. Any expenditure of funds after that date must be by extension of the grant award or carried over into the new project. Once the plan has been reviewed and approved, the effective date of the new grant award will be date that the new Schedule of Activities and Evaluation of the 1997-98 project were received by the Department of Education. Applications should be received on or before November 6, 1998.