Title I, Part A, Provisions for Equitable Services

1. Title I, Part A, Provisions for Equitable Services Virginia Department of Education Office of Program Administration and Accountability Title I University

2. Private Schools and ESEA ESEA (Section 1120) requires that access to equitable services be offered to: • Eligible students; • Their parents; • Teachers; and • Other educational personnel. Services are to be supplemental to core instruction and services offered by private schools: • No funds go directly to private schools or general needs of private schools • Participation by private schools not required

3. Equitable Services Provide services that are allowable and comparable to those provided to public school students and teachers participating in the program Can be different from those provided to public school participants Needs of private school students and teachers must be assessed and evaluated No funds are provided directly to private school

4. Bypass and Title I, Part A

5. Divisions in the Title I Bypass • Alexandria City • Arlington County • Chesapeake City • Fairfax County • Falls Church City • Henrico County • Lynchburg City • Newport News City • Norfolk City • Portsmouth City • Prince William County • Richmond City • Stafford County • Virginia Beach City

6. 118 Non-bypass Divisions

7. Consultation Process Consultation with private schools is the responsibility of the school division. The division is responsible for providing equitable services for its eligible children who attend private schools, even those attending private schools located in other divisions.

8. Affirmation of Consultation Specific to Title I Each division must have a written annual affirmation of consultation signed by an official of each participating private school. (Section 1120)

9. Examples of Services

10. Identification of Eligible Students

11. Fiscal Considerations

12. Consultation Meeting Discussion • identification of students’ needs amount of funds available for services • what services, size, and scope offered • how and where services will be provided When services will be provided • who will provide the services • how the services will be evaluated and results of evaluations will be used to improve those services • parent involvement and professional development Specific to Title I

13. Ensuring Productive Meaningful Consultation

14. Suggested Consultation Timeline Spring (Previous Year) Winter Summer Fall/Winter Spring

15. Title I Resource Tool Kit http://www.doe.virginia.gov/federal_programs/esea/title9/title_1_toolkit.pdf

16. Organization of Tool Kit

17. Consultation The consultation process between public and private school officials regarding the Title I program services should result in a Title I program designed to meet the education needs of eligible private school students.

18. Consultation Consultation must include meetings between division officials and appropriate private school officials and must occur before the division officials make any decision that affects the opportunity for private school students to participate.

19. Consultation In addition, consultation must occur in a timely and meaningful manner during the design, development, and implementation of the program. Ultimately, the division officials make the final decisions regarding provision of services after consultation has occurred.

20. Consultation - Tools Consultation Timeline

21. Consultation - Tools Guidelines for allowable expenditures

22. Consultation - Tools Consultation topics checklist

23. Consultation - Tools Sample letters to private schools

24. Participation of Private School Students Although the amount or value of Title I services provided to private school students is based on the number of low-income students attending the private school that reside in the Title I public school zone, low-income status is not a factor in determining which private school students are eligible to receive Title I services.

25. Participation of Private School Students To be eligible for Title I services, a private school student must reside in a participating public school attendance area and must meet the requirements in Section 1115 (b) of Title I, which states that students be identified as failing or at risk of failing on the basis of multiple, educationally related, objective criteria.

26. Participation of Private School Students Certain students may be identified as eligible solely by virtue of their status; for example, homeless students or students who participated in Head Start, Even Start, or Early Reading First within the past two years are eligible for Title I services.

27. Participation of Private School Students Students from preschool through grade 2 are selected solely on the basis of such criteria as teacher judgment, interviews with parents, and developmentally appropriate measures.

28. Participation of Private School Students - Tools Examples of how divisions calculate funds for equitable services

29. Participation of Private School Students - Tools Sample procedures for identifying eligible students

30. Participation of Private School Students - Tools Documentation of materials located at the school site

31. Participation of Private School Teachers The professional development activities offered to private school teachers should reflect not only the needs of the students being served by the Title I program but also the skills and knowledge that private school teachers need in the classroom to better instruct the students identified for Title I services.

32. Participation of Private School Teachers The professional development activities for private school teachers of participating students should be ongoing and activities should address how these teachers can better serve their students who are at risk of failing.

33. Participation of Private School Teachers It is prohibited to use Title I funds for activities that are designed to upgrade the instructional program in the regular classroom of the private school or meet the general needs of children in private schools.

34. Participation of Private School Teachers - Tools Teacher survey

35. Participation of Private School Teachers - Tools Professional development planning worksheet

36. Participation of Private School Families A proportional share of the funds a division reserves for parental involvement activities must be made available for parental involvement activities that benefit the families of private school students receiving Title I services. The activities must be designed in consultation with private school officials.

37. Participation of Private School Families Parents of private school students receiving Title I services should receive training and materials to help them work with their children to improve their children’s achievement.

38. Participation of Private School Families - Tools Placement notification letter to parents

39. Participation of Private School Families - Tools Title I Parent Information Night agenda

40. Participation of Private School Families - Tools Sample parent meeting sign in sheet

41. Participation of Private School Families - Tools Sample parent event evaluation sheet

42. Participation of Private School Families - Tools Sample annual parent survey

43. Frequently Asked Questions How do divisions determine participating public school attendance areas? • A public school attendance area is generally eligible to participate in Title I if its percentage of children from low-income families is at least as high as the percentage of children from low-income families in the division as a whole. • A division has the flexibility, for example, to decide to serve only elementary schools or a combination of elementary and middle schools, but not high schools.

44. Frequently Asked Questions Once the participating public school attendance areas have been established, how do divisions allocate funds for Title I services? • An LEA calculates the per-pupil allocation for each participating public school attendance area. The calculated allocation is then multiplied by the total number of children from low-income families residing in each attendance area attending the private school to determine the value of services for that school.

45. Frequently Asked Questions How do divisions collect poverty data on private school children? • The same measure(s) of poverty used by the division should be used in consultation with private schools. If available, divisions should use the same measure of poverty used to count public school children; e.g., free and reduced price lunch data. • Use comparable poverty data from a survey and allow such survey results to be extrapolated if complete actual data are unavailable.

46. Frequently Asked Questions Who may serve as the private school official representing the private school in meaningful consultation meetings? • Most often, the principal of the private school is the designated representative for consultation. • The principal may designate another individual at the school. • A group of principals may designate an individual to represent them.* • An official from a group of similarly-affiliated schools within a division may be designated. (e.g., a diocesan representative) * *Note: If someone other than the principal will represent the school or a group of schools, notification should be sent in writing to the division’s superintendent and Title I, Part A, coordinator.

47. Frequently Asked Questions May private schools within the same school division request that the school division “pool” funds for services? • Yes, funds for schools within the same school division may be pooled. • Funds may NOT be pooled across different school divisions. • If some schools wish to pool funds and others do not wish to pool, that is acceptable.

48. Frequently Asked Questions If a private school requests it, may a school division write a reimbursement check to a private school from Title I, Part A, funds? • No. It is never permissible to reimburse a private school for services or materials it has purchased. • Upon PRE-APPROVAL, a school division may reimburse an individual private school staff member for participation in approved professional development activities.

49. Information on Equitable Services 2 1 3 http://www.doe.virginia.gov/federal_programs/esea/title9/index.shtml

50. Questions