A1

Is the REA a competitive program?

Yes. Grants will be distributed to states through a competitive process. There is no formula to determine how much money states will receive, and there is no guarantee that all states will receive awards. States receiving grants will, in turn, hold subgrant competitions for eligible LEAs.

A2

How will the Reading Excellence Act funds flow from the Department of Education to the schools?

Under the Act, the Secretary of Education is authorized to make competitive grants to state educational agencies (SEAs). All states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and some outlying areas are eligible to apply. A state education agency may not receive more than one grant during the authorization period of FY 1999 and 2000.

State educational agencies that receive funding are required to make subgrants under two separate programs, Local Reading Improvement and Tutorial Assistance.

• Local Reading Improvement subgrants (Section 2255) are awarded on a competitive basis to: (1) local districts that have at least one school in Title I school improvement status; (2) districts with the highest or second highest number of poor children in the state (as counted under section 1124(c)); or (3) districts with the highest or second highest percentages of poverty in the state.

• Tutorial Assistance subgrants (Section 2256) are awarded on a competitive basis to LEAs that meet one of the eligibility criteria listed for the Local Reading Improvement subgrants plus LEAs that have at least one school in the geographic area served by the agency that is located in an area designated as an empowerment zone under part I of sub-chapter U of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or is located in an area designated as an enterprise community under that part.

Local districts that receive funds must use the funds to support services to eligible schools. Eligibility is determined as follows:

• Local Reading Improvement subgrants must be used to support the reform of reading instruction in any eligible school selected by the LEA that is a (1) school in Title I school improvement status; (2) school with the highest or second highest number of poor children in the district; or (3) school with the highest or second highest percentages of poverty in the district.

• Tutorial Assistance subgrants must be used for children enrolled in any school selected by the agency that meets the eligibility criteria for Local Reading Improvement schools or is within an empowerment zone or enterprise community.

A3

Must all eligible LEAs receive grants?

SEAs that receive grants must make competitive subgrants to eligible LEAs. SEAs should make subgrants only to those eligible LEAs that submit high quality applications for funding and which in their applications show a clear commitment to using grant funds to support the types of reading programs and activities that are described in the REA. If all eligible LEAs submit high quality applications, they may all receive funding. However, there is no requirement to give money to all eligible LEAs. SEAs could, for example, not fund the LEA with the largest number of poor children if that LEA submitted an application that was not of high quality.

In addition, SEAs may want to consider whether the funds available will allow them to fund all qualified applicants at a sufficient level to support effective programs and make awards accordingly, since a solid level of funding is necessary to effectively carry out the REA activities.

A4

How much money was appropriated for the Reading Excellence Act for FY 1999?

For FY 1999, $260 million was appropriated for the Reading Excellence Act. This includes $10 million for Even Start Statewide family literacy initiative grants, $3.9 million for national evaluation activities, $5 million for National Institute for Literacy dissemination, and $241.1 million for Reading Excellence Act grants to states.

The President's budget request for FY 2000 includes $286 million for the program, an increase of $26 million. Congressional action on the request is likely to occur during the summer or fall, 1999.

A5

What types of activities may be supported with Local Reading Improvement or Tutorial Assistance subgrants?

• For Local Reading Improvement subgrants, among the allowable activities are: providing professional development for teachers based on the best research and practice; operating tutoring programs before school, after school, during non-instructional periods of the school day, on weekends, and during the summer; providing family literacy services (based on programs such as the Even Start model) that enable parents to be their children?s first and most important teachers; providing programs to assist kindergarten children who are not ready for the transition to 1^st grade; and providing coordination of reading, library, and literacy programs within the local educational agency to avoid duplication and increase the effectiveness of activities. (Section 2255(d))

• Tutorial Assistance subgrants provide tutoring for children who have difficulty reading, including difficulty mastering phonemic awareness, systematic phonics, fluency, and reading comprehension. Such assistance may be provided before school, after school, on weekends, or during the summer, and instructional practices must be based on scientifically based reading research. (Section 2256(b))