Archived - Federal Register -- Part A of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as Amended; Notice

A r c h i v e d I n f o r m a t i o n

Improving America's Schools Act

Federal Register
Part A of Title I of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965, as
Amended; Notice

Vol. 60, No. 183/ Thursday, September 21, 1995/ Notices

The Department of Education has transmitted the following document to the Office of the Federal Register for publication. However, the official document is the one published in the Federal Register.

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

: Part A of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended.

AGENCY: Department of Education

ACTION: Notice exempting schoolwide programs under Part A of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended, from statutory or regulatory requirements of other Federal education programs.

SUMMARY: The U.S. Secretary of Education (the Secretary) exempts schoolwide programs under Part A of Title I, ESEA, from complying with statutory or regulatory provisions of most Federal education programs, if the intent and purposes of those programs are met in the schoolwide program. This notice complements the final Title I regulations published in the Federal Register on July 3, 1995 (60 FR 34800). Those final regulations explain schoolwide programs in greater detail, including eligibility requirements and program components. This notice identifies which Federal education program funds and services may be incorporated in a schoolwide program and provides guidance on satisfying the intent and purposes of the programs included.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Jean LeTendre, Director, Compensatory Education Programs, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 600 Independence Avenue, SW (Portals Building, room 4400), Washington, D.C. 20202-6132. Telephone (202) 260-0826. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1- 800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

SCHOOLWIDE PROGRAMS IN GENERAL

One of the most promising changes in the recent reauthorization of Title I, ESEA, is the expansion of schoolwide programs. A schoolwide program permits a school to use funds under Part A of Title I to upgrade the entire educational program of the school and to raise academic achievement for all children in the school, in contrast to a Title I targeted assistance program, in which Part A funds may be used only for supplementary educational services for eligible children. Under the reauthorized ESEA, this authority has now been expanded to include other Federal education funds (see "Inclusion of other Federal Funds" below).

Schoolwide programs grew out of research about what makes schools work for disadvantaged students. Repeated findings show that the principals, teachers, and other staff in highly successful schools develop and carry out comprehensive schoolwide reform strategies and expect high academic achievement from every child. They establish safe environments that are conducive to learning and support enriched instruction in an expanded core of subjects. Over the years, researchers have documented that when the entire school is the target of change, schools serving even the most disadvantaged youth can achieve success.

Section 1114 of Title I authorizes a school with a concentration of poverty of at least 60 percent in the 1995-96 school year and 50 percent in subsequent years to use funds under Part A to operate a schoolwide program and upgrade the entire educational program in the school. Under section 1114(b) of Title I and §200.8(d) of the final regulations, each schoolwide program must include a number of specific components. A schoolwide program school, for example, must conduct a comprehensive needs assessment of the entire school to determine the performance of its children in relation to the State's challenging content and performance standards; implement schoolwide reform strategies that are based on effective means of improving the achievement of children and that address the needs of all children in the school; use highly qualified professional staff; provide professional development for teachers and other staff; and implement strategies to increase parental involvement. Under a schoolwide program, a school is not required to identify particular children as eligible to receive Part A services, demonstrate that the services provided with Part A funds are supplemental to services that would otherwise be provided, or document that Part A funds are used to benefit only the intended beneficiaries.

INCLUSION OF OTHER FEDERAL EDUCATION FUNDS

For the first time, a schoolwide program school may also use funds from other Federal education programs in addition to Part A funds to upgrade the entire educational program. Specifically, section 1114(a)(4) of Title I authorizes the Secretary, through publication of a notice in the FEDERAL REGISTER, to exempt schoolwide programs from statutory or regulatory provisions of any other noncompetitive, formula grant program or any discretionary grant program administered by the Secretary (other than formula or discretionary grant programs under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), if the intent and purposes of those programs are met.

This authority affords a schoolwide program school significant flexibility to serve better all children in the school and their families through comprehensive reforms of the entire instructional program, rather than by providing separate services to specific target populations. The Secretary emphasizes that a school with a schoolwide program must address the needs of all children in the school, particularly the needs of children who are members of the target population of any other Federal education program that is included in the schoolwide program.

Through this notice, the Secretary authorizes a schoolwide program school to use funds from most Federal education programs administered by the Secretary (including programs under the School-to-Work Opportunities Act, which is jointly administered by the Secretary and the U.S. Secretary of Labor) to support its schoolwide program. This authority also extends to services, materials, and equipment purchased with those funds and provided to the school. To provide schoolwide program schools maximum discretion in using resources from Federal education programs to their best advantage, the Secretary encourages local educational agencies (LEAs), to the extent possible, to provide Federal funds directly to those schools, rather than providing personnel, materials, or equipment.

Programs That May Be Included

Except as provided below and consistent with this notice and section 1114 of Title I, the Secretary authorizes a schoolwide program school to use funds or services that the school receives from any Federal education program administered by the Secretary to upgrade its entire educational program. This authority does not apply to funds from the following types of programs:

Formula or discretionary grant programs under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (excluded by section 1114(a)(4)(A) of Title I) and funds provided for eligible children with disabilities under section 8003(d) of the ESEA.
Funds provided under the Schools Facilities Infrastructure Improvement Act to ensure the health and safety of students through the repair, renovation, alteration, and construction of school facilities.
Programs under Subpart 1 of Part D of Title I, ESEA, to State agencies for services to children in State institutions for neglected or delinquent children, unless funds are used for transition services involving a schoolwide program school.
Programs under the Adult Education Act or Subpart 3 of Part A of Title IX of the ESEA (adult Indians), unless adult literacy services are integrated within a schoolwide program plan. Adult education funds could be included, for example, if they provide adult literacy as part of a family literacy activity under a schoolwide program plan.
Funds awarded to institutions of higher education, unless those funds support elementary or secondary schools (e.g., the School, College, and University Partnerships program).
Programs that are not administered by the Secretary, such as the National School Lunch Program and Head Start.

In addition, the authority to use funds under other programs in schoolwide program schools does not apply to funds that are allocated by formula to nonschoolwide program schools in an LEA. This is not an authority to redistribute funds among schools. Any redistribution of funds would have to be consistent with the authorizing statute.

Satisfying "Intent and Purposes"

In general, a school that combines funds from other Federal education programs in a schoolwide program is not required to meet the statutory or regulatory requirements of those programs. Combining funds to meet the collective needs of the included programs allows schools to address needs in an integrated way and frees schools from documenting that a specific program dollar was spent only for a specific program activity. However, the school must meet the intent and purposes of the included programs to ensure that the needs of the intended beneficiaries of those programs are addressed by the school. In so doing, the school must be able to demonstrate that its schoolwide program contains sufficient activities to reasonably address those needs and thus meet the intent and purposes of each included program. However, the school need not document that it used funds from a particular program to meet the specific intent and purposes of that particular program.

The following examples illustrate how a schoolwide program could meet the intent and purposes of specific Federal education programs:

A secondary school may use funds received under the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act to support its schoolwide program if its program improves vocational education in the school, for example, by integrating academic and vocational education, and its program improves access to vocational education for special populations in the school.
A schoolwide program school may use funds received under the Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development program provided the school has a sustained and intensive high-quality professional development program for school staff in core academic subjects that is aligned with the State's content and performance standards, reflects recent research on teaching and learning, and incorporates methods and practices to meet the educational needs of diverse student populations.
A schoolwide program school may use funds received under Subpart 1 of Part A of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities program provided the school has a comprehensive drug and violence prevention program designed for all students and employees to create a disciplined environment conducive to learning, prevent violence and promote school safety, prevent the use, possession, and distribution of tobacco, alcohol, and illegal drugs by students, and prevent the illegal use, possession, and distribution of those substances by employees.
A school may use funds received under Subpart 1 of the Bilingual Education Act to support its schoolwide program provided the program implements a bilingual education or special alternative instruction program that reforms, restructures, and upgrades the programs and operations that serve limited-English proficient children and youth in the school.
A secondary school may use funds received under the School-to- Work Opportunities Act to support its schoolwide program provided the program integrates school-based and work-based learning, establishes effective linkages between secondary and post- secondary education, and is part of a comprehensive State model school-to-work opportunities system that provides for the early selection of career majors and the awarding of skill certificates.

The Department will provide examples from schoolwide schools when they become available.

Requirements With Which a Schoolwide Program School Must Comply

Even though a schoolwide program school combines funds from other Federal programs in its schoolwide program and is thus freed from most statutory and regulatory requirements of those programs, the school and its LEA, as appropriate, must still comply with requirements applicable to those programs relating to--

Health and safety requirements.
Civil rights requirements. These requirements include Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. In addition, if a schoolwide program school receives Magnet Schools Assistance funds, to eliminate, reduce, or prevent minority group isolation, the school must continue to operate under its desegregation plan.
Gender equity requirements.
Participation and involvement of parents and students. A schoolwide program school must implement extensive parent involvement requirements under Part A that would likely satisfy most, if not all, parent involvement requirements in other Federal education programs.
Private school children, teachers, and other educational personnel. In other words, applicable requirements concerning the equitable participation of eligible private school children, teachers, and other educational personnel under other Federal education programs must be met even though funds from those programs are combined in schoolwide program schools.
Maintenance of effort. For programs covered under the maintenance of effort requirements in section 14501 of the ESEA, those requirements would be met through participation in Part A.
Comparability of services. For example, a secondary schoolwide program school within an LEA that receives funds under the Carl D. Perkins State Vocational and Applied Technology Education Program must be provided services from State and local funds that, taken as a whole, are at least comparable to the services being provided in other secondary schools or sites within the same LEA that are not being served with Perkins funds.
Use of Federal funds to supplement, not supplant non-Federal funds. In other words, a schoolwide program school must receive at least the same amount of State and local funds that, in the aggregate, it would have received in the absence of the schoolwide program, including funds needed to provide services that are required by law for children with disabilities and children with limited-English proficiency. The school, however, does not have to demonstrate that the specific services provided with those funds are supplemental to services that would have been provided in that school in the absence of the schoolwide program.
Distribution of funds to State educational agencies (SEAs) and LEAs.

In addition, a school must comply with the following requirements if it combines funds from these programs in its schoolwide program:

Consistent with section 1306(b)(3) of Title I and §200.8(c)(3)(ii)(B)(1) of the proposed Title I regulations, a schoolwide program school that combines funds received under Part C of Title I, ESEA, for the education of migratory children must, in consultation with parents of migratory children or organizations representing those parents, first address the identified needs of migratory children that result from the effects of their migratory lifestyle or are needed to permit those children to participate effectively in school and document that services to address those needs have been provided.
Consistent with section 9115(c) of the ESEA and §200.8(c)(3)(ii)(B)(2) of the Title I regulations, a schoolwide program school may combine funds received under Subpart 1 of Part A of Title IX of the ESEA regarding Indian education if the parent committee established by the LEA under section 9114(c)(4) of the ESEA approves the inclusion of those funds.

Cross-cutting Federal requirements

There are requirements contained in the General Education Provisions Act and in the Education Department General Administrative Regulations that apply generally to Department of Education grants, including Title I. To the extent that these requirements affect activities in schools, they would also apply to a schoolwide program school by virtue of its participation in Title I. The consolidation of Department programs in a schoolwide program, however, would not add to these requirements or require that they be applied separately on a program-by-program basis.

Discretionary Grant Funds

In general, a schoolwide program school may combine funds it receives from discretionary (competitive) grants as well as from formula grants. If a schoolwide program school combines funds from discretionary grant programs, the school must still carry out the activities described in the application under which the funds were awarded. For example, if a schoolwide program is based in a school receiving Federal funds under the Magnet Schools Assistance program, the school must implement activities described in its plan to eliminate, reduce, or prevent minority group isolation. However, a schoolwide program school would not need to account separately for specific expenditures of the combined Federal funds. Although not required, the applicant LEA or school preferably should indicate in its application for discretionary funds that some or all of the funds would be used to support a schoolwide program and describe its activities accordingly. Moreover, if authorized by the program statute, the Department or an SEA could include in its selection criteria for a particular program extra points for conducting activities in a schoolwide program school. For example, an SEA could include such points when awarding subgrants under the Even Start Family Literacy program, which requires an SEA to give priority to applicants that target services to families in need of family literacy services residing in areas with high levels of poverty, illiteracy, or other such need-related factors, including projects that serve a high percentage of children to be served who reside in participating areas under Part A.

Limitations

The authority in this notice does not apply to nonschoolwide program schools that participate in Title I. Those schools must comply with all statutory and regulatory requirements that apply to funds or benefits they receive. This authority also does not relieve an LEA from complying with all requirements that do not affect the operation of a schoolwide program. For example, to the extent an LEA is required under the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act to designate a homeless liaison to ensure, among other things, that homeless children and youth enroll and succeed in school, the LEA would not be relieved of this requirement by virtue of operating one or more schoolwide programs.

Guidance and Technical Assistance

The Secretary intends to issue additional guidance on schoolwide programs in the near future. In addition, staff in the office of Compensatory Education Programs, in conjunction with staff in the other affected Federal program offices, are available to assist LEAs and schools operating schoolwide programs to implement the authority contained in this notice. If LEAs or schools have specific questions, they should contact Mary Jean LeTendre, Director, Compensatory Education Programs, as provided at the beginning of this notice.

National assessment of schoolwide programs

The Department is directed by section 1501 of Title I to examine, in a national assessment of Title I programs, how well schools are providing participating children an enriched and accelerated educational program through schoolwide programs and how schoolwide programs are meeting the needs of children from migratory families. In this assessment, the Department will examine how the authority contained in this notice has been implemented.

Dated: September 15, 1995

Richard W. Riley,
Secretary of Education

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.010, Improving Programs Operated by Local Educational Agencies)

[FR Doc. 95-23471 Filed 9-20-95; 8:45 am]
4000-01-P
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