Salem School District accepts Title II and Title III grants totaling about $180,000
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Summary
The board approved acceptance and expenditure authorization for Title II-A ($152,671.78), Title III-A ($13,562.04) and Title III-A immigrant ($14,140.91) grants; administrators described intended uses and eligibility criteria for each grant.
The Salem School Board on Aug. 19, 2025 voted unanimously to accept three federal grant allocations and authorized district staff to spend the funds consistent with grant requirements.
Superintendent Mara Palmer said the district's Title II-A allocation for 2025-26 is $152,671.78, an increase of $9,297.54 from fiscal year 2025. "This title 2 funding is used primarily for professional development across the board of all staff," Palmer said; she noted the budget includes salary for one reading specialist.
Debbie Payne, assistant superintendent for business operations, explained that Title III-A funds for English learners total $13,562.04 for 2025-26 and are awarded based on the district's count of limited English proficient students in the U.S. Department of Education reporting window. Payne also described an additional Title III-A immigrant allocation of $14,140.91, which the district qualified for this year after meeting federal eligibility criteria.
Payne summarized the immigrant-grant eligibility: "A district has to have been filing their paperwork appropriately for 3 consecutive years... You have to have more than 25 immigrant youth enrolled in a district and you had to have had a significant increase over the prior 2 years and so that significant increase is defined as 25% or more." She also reported the district serves students speaking 24 unique languages and 31 household home languages among students receiving services.
Board members moved and passed separate motions to accept each grant and authorize expenditures in line with grant requirements: Title II-A was moved by Michael Carney; Title III-A and Title III-A immigrant were moved by Bernie Campbell (motions seconded and approved 5-0). Administrators said uses will include professional development, ESOL programming and supports for immigrant students; specific allocations will be determined by the grant program staff during the year.
