Best Practices for LEA Management of Title I Programs

LEA fiscal representatives and LEA grant contacts should follow all budget procedures and district accounting requirements are established and monitored in accordance with federal and state law. Your careful attention and diligence to this information and process ensure we remain responsible stewards of these resources to support improved outcomes for students.

Best Practices for Title I Grant Application

Effective school improvement requires analysis of local context and need, which includes gathering and analyzing data and getting stakeholder feedback. This work not only makes your grant application process easier, but it is also directly correlated to improved outcomes for students (citation on school improvement planning). The following steps are recommended based on evidence from successful Connecticut Districts with evidence of highly effective Title I programs.

Step 1: Gather & Analyze Evidence, Brainstorm Factors, and get to a Root Cause

1. Craft District and School Improvement Plans With your team, engage in the needs assessment or school improvement planning process to determine the needs of students, and determining next steps. There are several tools available to support this work, which is critical for Title I program success.  The Needs Assessment Toolkit available on the CSDE website is a helpful tool that can support your planning for the upcoming year. The grant application requests information that can be pulled directly from this work, to support cohesion in your district.

Step Two: Planning Next Steps

2. Understanding Evidence Based programs that address root cause(s). Review evidence guides to determine the kinds of programs most likely to impact outcomes. Evidence based programs have been proven to work to improve outcomes for students, while research based means the programs have been studied.  It is especially important to understand which evidence-based programs work well for the identified needs in your district.
3. Identify Eligibility for Schoolwide Programs (SWP) & Targeted Assistance Programs (TAP) When applying for your Title I grant, your LEA engages in a process called Ranking and Serving. This ranks schools in order of need as evidenced by poverty. Please note, it is required that you prioritize funding based on student need. A school with a higher poverty ratio should be allocated an amount greater than or equal to other schools. Once eligibility is determined, you can communicate findings from the district needs assessment and support school leaders in conducting their own needs assessments and school improvement plans.

Step Three: Bring the Team Together

4. Bring District Title I Leaders to the Table Title I Part A requires districts to set aside funds for homeless students, family engagement, and for eligible private school participation. Meaningful collaboration with partners, such as Private School Leaders, Homeless Liaisons, Family Engagement Coordinators, should be done prior to submission of the grant.  These individuals can support the goals of Title I and their feedback can help improve grant outcomes. There may also be caps on administrative costs. When Fiscal agents and grant contacts work as a team with any external vendors or grant recipients, outcomes for students improve.
5. Maintain Open Communication with Finance Offices & related Departments Many districts have a method for linking expenditures to grants. This can include specific language on requisitions and purchase orders, maintaining a project spreadsheet, or sharing all project details. Depending on the side of your district, LEA Fiscal representatives may need reminders of grant deadlines and understand where to class expenditures. If you are new to federal chart of accounts, you may also need a refresher on what to charge to which line. If data is required to be collected for a targeted assistance program, or new initiatives include software or other technology needs, be sure to consult with your technology department.
6. Reach Out for Technical Assistance The Title I office is available to answer questions related to programming or put you into contact with districts who have engaged in similar work. “Technical assistance” doesn’t just mean help with the Electronic Grants Management system, it can be any type of collaboration or consulting that ultimately helps to improve programming in your district. If you are already working with CSDE as an Alliance, Opportunity, or Commissioner’s network district, you can also reach out to those individuals. To request technical assistance, contact your Consolidated Grant program manager.

Step Four: Communicating, Ongoing Monitoring, and Oversight

1. Clearly Communicate in Multiple Formats District and School leadership should work to communicate about the goals of title 1 to support the use of these resources in service of students. Regular, ongoing professional development and support for Title I school leaders is a requirement for the LEAs. Superintendents also provide assurances that opportunities for feedback have been provided before submitting the application. It is also important to be transparent about the requirements of Title I, and the goals of the LEA program.
   1. Share the district Title I application and request that Title I school leaders familiarize themselves with the content. Some LEAs decide to summarize key components and expectations in a beginning of year memo. You can use this template for a beginning of year memo to get started, and modify based on your needs.
   2. Clarify the connection between needs assessment, school improvement plans, and Title I programming. This will help school leaders identify if the request is consistent with an approved grant expense and your identified strategies outlined in the school plan.
   3. Share and encourage school leaders to review guidance documents. This includes all Consolidated grant materials under CSDE resources in EGMS.
   4. Share professional development opportunities.Encourage school leaders and Title I faculty to sign up for either the Schoolwide program listserv or Targeted Assistance program listserv, depending on their program. Share information on CSDE offered virtual learning or request individualized technical assistance via TEAMs or in person. If you have new Title I principals, connect with CSDE to identify professional learning resources that can support onboarding.To view upcoming offerings, you can go to the CSDE Calendar and enter Title I in the search bar.
   5. Monitor school programming. School leaders are busy and have many different hats to wear. Consider a monthly reminder email to provide guidance on what requirements should be met, or what documents should be submitted to the district. Review Title I compacts, meeting minutes and agendas, progress monitoring data, and family engagement event attendance and outcomes. Many districts find a cycle of beginning-, middle-, and end-of-year check-ins valuable to monitor and adjust programming to meet developing needs of students.

2. Provide Guidance on Fiscal Management   Principals and department heads are responsible for ensuring the proper use of budget lines and object codes when making purchases. The LEA can support this through:
1. Put Fiscal Procedures in Writing sharing the district financial procedures handbook, and any guidance on request for purchases, using proper object codes based on the National Center for Education Statistics website as a reference guide
2. Set Expectations for School Level Budget Monitoring Provide clear guidance for school leaders to plan expenses in alignment with the grant and set expectations that require schools to monitor budgets regularly (i.e. weekly, monthly, or at least quarterly).
3. Train all of those involved in purchasing or making requests Sharing established protocols and procedures with anyone entering Purchase Orders or making requests will help ensure everyone in the LEA is on the same page. For example, make sure members of the accounting team have demonstrated knowledge of the grant requirements, and that teachers understand how to ask for needed items in a way that is systematic and easy to follow from request to shipment to inventory to packing slip/invoice submission.
4. Identify Common Pitfalls and Solutions For example, help principals understand the process for what to do. These include:
1. Avoid Overspending an identified account is overspent, although more funds are needed. How will they communicate with you if they wish to request transfers from one object code to another? How will you make sure schools do not overspend in one line, and understand in another? Share the LEAs transfer request process and method for contacting Title I coordinator in the case that they wish to make changes, aditions, or deletions to approved Title I expenses in advance of the budget revision deadlines.
2. Establish Protocols for Inventory and Labeling of Title I funded materials Clearly outline requirements for receiving materials purchased through Title I, and establish a process of annual inventory of those items.
3. Ensure access to important records Maintain time and effort documentation, Title I staffing certification compliance, and all required documents including but not limited to the LEA Family Engagement Policies, Title I Compacts, and Parents Right-to-Know letters. Some districts maintain a Title I website that links to school websites so that all required documents, and other requirements outlined under ESEA, to promote transparency.

Following these procedures can significantly reduce compliance and financial risk, with the grant and, more importantly, help you to manage these important resources to improve outcomes for students.