NORTH CAROLINA
After-School Quality
Improvement Grant Program
October 22, 2014
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Housekeeping
 Due to the large number of participants, please
use the question box feature during the
webinar to submit any questions.
 Any questions not answered during the webinar
will be collected and used to update the FAQs.
 The presentation slides will be posted on the
website at:
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/programmonitoring/after-school/.
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High-Quality After-School Programs
Improved test scores and school grades
Improved school attendance and engagement
Lower dropout rates
Reduced juvenile crime
Increased awareness of healthy lifestyles
Reduced summer learning loss
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The North Carolina Program
• North Carolina General Assembly appropriated
five million dollars ($5,000,000) in state funds
for the After-School Quality Improvement Grant
Program (Program)
• Provides funds to pilot after-school learning
programs for at-risk students that raise student
academic outcomes
• Offers up to five hundred thousand dollars
($500,000) a year for two years with an option
for a third year of funding
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Focus of the Program
• Evidence-based model with a proven track
record of success
• Rigorous quantitative performance measures
• Alignment with NC Standard Course of Study
• Prioritization for STEM and reading
• Emphasis on minimizing staff/student ratios
• Expansion of student access to learning
activities and academic support that strengthen
student engagement and leverage communitybased resources
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Requirements
• Eligible recipients include local education
agencies (LEAs) and nonprofits working in
collaboration with LEAs
• Funds available on a 3 to 1 match (i.e., matching
donations and in-kind contributions)
• Match cannot include state funds or federal
funds with supplement/supplant provisions
• At least 70% of students served must be eligible
for free or reduced-price meals
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Tentative Timeline
• October 1 – Request for
Proposals (RFP) approved by
State Board of Education (SBE)
• October 17 – Intent to Apply due
• October 22 – Technical Assistance
Webinar
• November 14 – Application due
by 11:59 p.m. EST
• January 2 – Recommendations to
the SBE for approval
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Request for Proposals
Involvement of staff across DPI divisions
o
o
o
o
o
o
Federal Programs
Curriculum and Instruction
K-3 Literacy
Career and Technical Education
Financial and Business Services
Accountability
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Intent to Apply
Used to determine the number of reviewers
needed for the application review process
• Not a prerequisite for
application of grant
funds
• Does not obligate the
organization to submit
an application
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How to Apply
1. Develop proposals utilizing tools as
needed
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Application Guidance (with Rating Rubric)
Application Planning Worksheets
Frequently Asked Questions
Cost Calculator/NC Department of
Commerce Tiers
2. Prepare to submit application through
the web-based grants management
system, the Comprehensive Continuous
Improvement Plan (CCIP)
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Using the Cost Calculator
• Calculator estimates should be viewed as good
general cost estimates
• Cost Calculator will provide an annual total
program cost with low, median, and high
estimations
• The total request for each organization must
be based on the NC Department of
Commerce’s 2014 Tier Designations
• Organizations may request up to 75% of the
total cost to account for the required match
• No application will receive an award totaling
more than $500,000
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Tier 1
Tier 2
Tier 3
• High
estimate
• 75% of
total
• Median
estimate
• 75% of
total
• Low
estimate
• 75% of
total
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Using CCIP
• LEAs must determine the local User
Account Administrator
• All LEAs have staff trained on CCIP
• Contact Title I office if needed
• Nonprofits must acquire a valid NCID to
access CCIP
• CCIP training offered October 23-24 and
October 26-27
• CCIP training materials posted on website
• May have the collaborating LEA submit the
application in CCIP
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Application Components
Planning
Tool
Funding
Application
• Needs Assessment
• Goals
• Budget
• Grant Details
• Plan Relationships
• Related Documents
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Proposal Evaluations
• Only complete applications submitted
through the CCIP system marked as “Draft
Completed” by the deadline will be reviewed
• Each application will be reviewed by 3
independent evaluators
• Evaluators use the Application Rating Rubric
(Appendix F in Application Guidance)
• Scores are averaged to determine final score
• Priorities for STEM and reading activities are
embedded within the Rating Rubric
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Proposal Evaluations
EXAMPLE: Needs Assessment
The applicant provides a description of the
needs assessment conducted to determine the
proposed program.
• STEM Priority: applicant completes the STEM Attribute Selfassessment Summary Rubric and provides narrative evidence
of level of achievement and explicit justification of need.
• Language Priority: applicant provides evidence of reading
results for levels of students being served (K-3 mClass
benchmark data comparisons BOY-EOY, Grades 4-8 EOG
reading results, 6-12 EOC results) along with a detailed
summary of data analysis and trends.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
are posted at:
http://www.ncpublicschools.or
g/program-monitoring/afterschool/
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which organizations are eligible to apply for the
grants?
The law states, “Local school administrative units
and nonprofits working in collaboration with
local school administrative units may participate
in the program.”
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Frequently Asked Questions
Are charter schools considered to be “local school
administrative units?”
No. In accordance with Public School Law, “‘Local school
administrative unit’ means a subdivision of the public school
system which is governed by a local board of education. It may
be a city school administrative unit, a county school
administrative unit, or a city-county school administrative unit.”
[§ 115C-5.] A charter school is a public school operated by a
private nonprofit corporation and as such, is considered to be a
nonprofit for the purpose of applying for these grants. [§ 115C238.29E.] Additionally, other nonprofits working in
collaboration with local school administrative units may apply
for the funds.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can the entire grant be operated through a
school within an LEA with the school serving as
the fiscal agent?
The local education agency (LEA) must apply on
behalf of one or more of its schools and serve as
the Fiscal Agent.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Since the budget for community groups will be run through the LEA , will
the proposal for community groups be entered into the district’s CCIP or
the nonprofit’s own CCIP?
If a nonprofit working in collaboration with a local school administrative
unit (i.e., LEA) wishes to apply directly through CCIP, the organization
may do so. However, it is strongly recommended that nonprofit
applicants collaborate with LEAs to submit the funding application
through the CCIP system. While this is not required and will not impact
the selection process for any application submitted by the due date, it
may reduce burden for nonprofit applicants as it relates to training
necessary for using the CCIP system (i.e., all LEAs already have local staff
trained on the use of CCIP).
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Frequently Asked Questions
In the Purpose section of the Application Guidance document, it states
that, “the purpose …. is to pilot after-school learning programs.” Does
this mean that the program is designed to support new programs and
not supplement existing programs?
Yes. However, this does not prevent organizations that offer other afterschool programs from using those same program designs in conjunction
with the state-funded After-School Quality Improvement Grant Program
to serve schools/students not currently served. For example, an
applicant may use the After-School Quality Improvement Grant
Program to serve K-2 students using the same program design as the
applicant’s existing program that currently serves students in grades 35. Any program funded through the After-School Quality Improvement
Grant Program will be considered as a standalone program for the
purposes of meeting legislated requirements. (Updated 11/03/2014)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Since LEAs will serve as fiscal agents for nonprofit groups
that apply for these funds, how will funds be managed?
In order to comply with financial reporting and cash
management procedures established through the state’s
Uniform Education Reporting System (UERS), each nonprofit
applicant, including public charter schools, must identify the
local school administrative unit that will serve as the Fiscal
Agent for the grant. LEAs will manage the funds through their
standard fiscal procedures.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can a nonprofit partner with multiple LEAs for one
application? If yes, who serves as the Fiscal Agent?
If multiple LEAs are partnering with a single
nonprofit applicant, then one LEA must be identified
as the Fiscal Agent for the grant.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Are these funds provided through a federal or
state funding source (Fund 1 or Fund 3)?
The funds provided for the After-School Quality
Improvement Grant Program are state funds
provided by the General Assembly through
Session Law 2014-100.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Will this Program Report Code (PRC) be linked
to the Department’s budgeting system in the
same way as other federal funds so that
budgeting is accomplished through the
Department’s budgeting system?
The PRC for the After-School Quality
Improvement Grant Program is PRC 040 and
the funds will be managed through the
Department’s budgeting system.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the period of availability for the AfterSchool Quality Improvement Grant Program
funds?
The grant cycle is aligned to the state fiscal year.
The funding that is approved by the State Board
of Education will be available for the second year
of the program contingent upon legislative budget
approval and the applicant organization’s
compliance with reporting requirements.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Do funds carry over from year one to year two?
Yes.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Since the funds are not available until January, how many
weeks of programming should be input into the Wallace
Foundation Cost Calculator?
The number of weeks entered into the Cost Calculator
should be for a full year of programming. Typically there
are more program costs for the first year of
implementation when operating a multi-year grant
supported after-school program. Additionally, remaining
carryover funds may be used to support or expand the
program in the second year of implementation.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can the After-School Quality Improvement Grant
Program be offered during the summer?
Yes. Summer programming or programs that
operate during intercessions are generally
accepted as after-school programs (i.e., time
outside of the regular school day).
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Frequently Asked Questions
May applicants use the value of classrooms and campus
space as match?
Yes. In-kind contributions may include any non-monetary
resources that partners and the sub-grantee’s
organization provide to support the project based on fair
market value which may include the use of “space” for
the program. In general, the match requirement may be
met through any donated funds or in-kind contributions
which are not funded through state or federal
supplemental funds (e.g., 21st Century Community
Learning Center grants).
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Frequently Asked Questions
May vendor discounts count toward meeting the
match requirement?
Yes. The value of the discount may be attributed
to the match requirement. In general, the match
requirement may be met through any donated
funds or in-kind contributions which are not
funded through state or federal supplemental
funds.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Appendix D states that “only students with a signed and completed
Form on file will be considered for these need-based opportunities.”
Appendix D does not contain an option stating that none of the
income choices are applicable (student does not qualify for F/R). Do
the parents of all participants have to submit a form?
No. Using the form does not prohibit the program from allowing 30%
of the participants to be children whose families have not sent back
the needs-based survey.
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Frequently Asked Questions
May the organization use household applications
or direct certification data collected for the
Community Eligibility Provision instead of the
needs-based survey?
No. Given student privacy issues around family
income status, School Nutrition Services
provided the form as an alternative to
determining a student’s eligibility (i.e., instead of
data collected through household applications or
direct certification).
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Frequently Asked Questions
When will CCIP be updated to include the AfterSchool Quality Improvement Grant Program?
The Department intends to have the new grants
included in CCIP by the end of October. Using the
Application Planning Worksheets will ensure that
organizations have sufficient time to develop
plans prior to entering information into the
grants management system.
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RESOURCES
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2014 North Carolina County Tier Designations http://www.nccommerce.com/research-publications/incentivereports/county-tier-designations
Afterschool Alliance http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/publications.cfm
After-School Quality Improvement Grant Program http://www.ncpublicschools.org/program-monitoring/afterschool/
North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs (NC CAP) http://www.nccap.net/
Southwest Educational Development Laboratory http://www.sedl.org/expertise/afterschool.html
Wallace Foundation http://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/afterschool/key-research/Documents/The-Cost-of-Quality-of-Out-ofSchool-Time-Programs.pdf.
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Thank You!
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