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Federal programs director outlines partnerships, staffing increases and strategic use of Title funds
Summary
Jason Isaacs, federal programs, described new inter-district partnerships, additional compliance-monitor hires, strategic targeting of Title and CSI funds to support school improvement and the district's success in securing two special-education grants.
Jason Isaacs, representing federal programs, briefed the board on efforts to strengthen compliance capacity, expand partnerships and strategically use federal funds to support school improvement.
Partnerships and staffing: Isaacs said the district had begun partnerships with other large Alabama districts such as Jefferson County to share best practices for parent-family engagement and programmatic approaches. He said federal programs is adding compliance-monitor positions (one already onboard, more in process) and school-focused technical assistance roles to provide hands-on support to buildings.
Strategic use of funds: Isaacs summarized federal funding sources (Title I, Title II, Title III, Title IV, Title I-D, 21st Century) and noted that the district recently used collaboration between federal programs and special education to obtain two special-education gap grants totalling $400,000 for two elementary schools. He said the district is working to maximize competitive federal grant opportunities such as homeless grants and 21st Century to expand after-school programming.
Programmatic changes: Federal programs has created new, programmatic budget templates for principals and is piloting or planning document-depository systems (e.g., 806 Technologies/Title I CRATE) for collection and review of compliance documentation. Isaacs said remote one-on-one budget support sessions were underway to help principals with programmatic budget planning and compliance questions.
Why this matters: Federal funds are a significant supplemental revenue stream for target schools and programs. Strengthened compliance staffing and clearer templates are intended to reduce supplanting risk, improve program effectiveness and increase the district's ability to secure competitive grants.
Board questions: Board members asked about Title I schoolwide status across the district and staffing for non-schoolwide programs; Isaacs said nearly all schools in the district are schoolwide except one high school under review, and he will report back with specifics.
Attribution: Presentation by Jason Isaacs (Federal Programs). The superintendent and CSFO were referenced as working collaborators for grant success.
