Grants and Other Financial Assistance Programs: FY2008

Priorities are to:

1. increase English proficiency and academic achievement in core academic subjects of limited English proficient students by providing high-quality language instruction programs and content area teaching;

2. provide high-quality professional development to enable classroom teachers to deliver effective sheltered content and English language instruction; and

3. develop, implement, and provide extended day, weekend, and summer opportunities for English language and academic content instruction for limited English proficient students.

An estimated $9,363,123 (based on the FY2007 allocation) will be available for grants to eligible districts. Districts will be awarded a share of available funds based on the district's percentage of limited English proficient students in the state as reported in March 2007. Funding amounts will be sent to superintendents of eligible districts when the Department has received its state allocation from the United States Department of Education (USDOE).

Additional Title III funds will be awarded to eligible districts that have experienced a significant growth in immigrant children and youth*. Two criteria will be used to determine eligibility for the additional funds:

1. an increase of 10% or more immigrant students in the March 2007 SIMS over the average number of immigrant students reported in March 2005 and March 2006 SIMS; and

2. an increase of 50 additional immigrant students in the March 2007 SIMS as compared to the number of immigrant students reported in the March 2006 SIMS. Districts meeting both criteria will receive an additional $100 for each immigrant child reported in the March 2007 SIMS.

Please note:

* An immigrant student is one who is born outside the United States and who is in his/her first three years of schooling in the United States. (For making this determination, Puerto Rico is considered part of the United States. Students born in Puerto Rico are not immigrant students.)

A limited English Proficient (LEP) student is a student whose first language is not English and cannot perform ordinary classwork in English. There is no time limit on how long a student can be LEP.

A student can be designated as both immigrant and LEP for three years. After three years the student can still be designated LEP, (depending on assessment results), but cannot be designated as an immigrant.

a.			Budget Detail - Description of Line Item Information
b.			Title III - Attachment 1 - List of Eligible School Districts
c.			Title III - Attachment 2 - Required and Authorized Activities Using Title III Funds

Note:

Applications submitted or approved after September 1, 2007 can legally claim expenses to the grant only from the date of final Department approval. Therefore, it is important to have district contact staff who can be reached in July and August to respond to questions, as needed.