Grants and Other Financial Assistance Programs: FY2007

1. Proposals must be submitted by a high-need school district or a district partnering with a high-need district that has been identified by the Department in the NCLB Title II-D, FY2007 High-Need School Districts list.
   (http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/grants/fy07/170_highneed.html)

2. Additional partners may include: other school districts; other high-need school districts; institutions of higher education; cultural institutions; professional educational organizations; and businesses.

3. The applying school district must have received a letter approving the implementation of its 2005-2006 technology plan. The proposed project activities should align with the district's technology plan.

4. School districts must certify that they have complied with the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) requirements.

5. School districts must engage in timely and meaningful consultation with appropriate private school officials. The consultation should begin during the development of the grant proposal.

1. Approximately $500,000 will be available for this program. The Department anticipates it will fund approximately 10 projects.

2. The Department anticipates it will fund at least 2 projects that focus on Universal Design for Learning, assistive technology, and differentiated instruction.

3. Requests for funds should not exceed $50,000 per project and all proposed budgets are subject to negotiation.

The Department of Education reserves the right to cancel a course that has enrolled fewer than 15 participants two weeks prior to its start date and to discontinue the remainder of the grant funding.

The project parameters include, but are not limited to, the following.

1. The lead district and the appropriate service provider must form a collaborative partnership to provide need-based online course(s) that focus on the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks and/or the Massachusetts revised K-12 Instructional Technology Standards using MassONE.

2. The lead district must form a team of educators to participate in the professional development. This team will then train other educators in the district and other districts. During this period, the service provider will act as the coach/mentor to the team. (See details in Part III - Required Program Information.)

3. At least 90% of the course must be delivered online using MassONE. The online course must meet the Department's guidelines as stated in the Massachusetts Recommended Criteria for Distance Learning Courses
   http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/news03/dl_letter.html.

4. A summative assessment must be included to evaluate the effectiveness of the online professional development on educators and students. (See details in Part III - Required Program Information.)

Allowable expenditures include:

1. a contract with a service provider of up to $30,000 per course to:

   1. design and develop the online course;
   2. deliver the course; and
   3. train and mentor/coach the participants;

2. up to 20% of the grant funds for the applying district to support its participants in offering the same course(s) for other educators;

3. up to 10% of the grant funds to procure the services of an external evaluator; and

4. up to 10% of grant funds may be used for administrative purposes.

FY2007 Competitive grants: Upon Approval - 8/31/2007

FY2008 Continuation grants: 9/1/2007 - 8/31/2008

Friday, March 23, 2007

Competitive proposals must be received at the Department by 5:00 p.m. on the date due.

1. Two Signature Pages for each proposal must be submitted.

   		FY2007 Competitive (Upon Approval - 8/31/2007) Part I - General - Program Unit Signature Page - (Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants)
   		FY2008 Continuation (9/1/2007 - 8/31/2008) Part I - General - Program Unit Signature Page - (Standard Contract Form and Application for Program Grants)

2. Two sets of the Budget Detail pages must be submitted for each proposal.

   		FY2007 Competitive Part II - Budget Detail Pages (Include both pages.) Instructions
   		FY2008 Continuation Part II - Budget Detail Pages (Include both pages.) Instructions
   		Budget Narrative Form

3. Part III - Required Program Information

4. Form A: Cover Page

5. CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act) Certification Form

1. Prior to developing the proposals, applicants should refer to the following information.

   • FY2007 High-Need Districts List
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/grants/fy07/170_highneed.html

   • Information Session:
     Monday, March 5, 2007 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Massachusetts Department of Education, 75 Pleasant Street, Malden (Room 3A.)

     To register, email Nicole Cirino at ncirino@doe.mass.edu by Thursday, March 1, 2007.

2. When developing proposals for this program, districts should refer to the following resources.

   • Scoring Rubric   

   • Massachusetts Recommended Criteria for Distance Learning Courses
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/news03/dl_letter.html

   • Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/current.html

   • Draft of Revised Massachusetts Recommended K-12 Instructional Technology Standards
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/standards/itstand_draft.doc

   • Massachusetts STaR Chart
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/boe/sac/edtech/star.html

   • Technology Self-Assessment Tool
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/standards/sa_tool.html

   • Recommended Criteria for Evaluating Instructional Technology Materials
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/standards/tech_mat.PDF

   • Assistive Technology Guide for Massachusetts Schools
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/edtech/toolkit/students/ATguide.pdf

   • Educator Services: Teaching and Learning
     http://www.doe.mass.edu/educators/e_support.html

Submit four (4) sets, each with an original signature of the Superintendent/Executive Director. Mail to:

Nicole Fazio Cirino
Office of Instructional Technology
Massachusetts Department of Education
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-4906