Moorhead schools prioritize K'2 supports as $2.3 million in preliminary Title funds arrive

Isaac Lundberg, a district staff member, told the Moorhead Area Public Schools Independent School Board on Oct. 27 that the district is prioritizing K'2 programming in its federal Title plan after late federal allocations delayed normal planning timelines.

"So in total, that's about 2,300,000.0," Lundberg said, summarizing the preliminary Title allocations the district received. He said Title I Part A is the largest pot and is directed at at-risk students, while other Title streams (I-D, II, III, IV and VI) support neglected/delinquent programs, professional development, English learners, a mix of programs, and Indian education, respectively.

Lundberg said the district did not receive the usual March preliminary awards this year and that some Title awards arrived as late as July, compressing the window for staffing and budgeting decisions. To preserve the impact of federal funds, he said the district has continued a strategy adopted in prior years to serve grade bands and prioritize K'2 literacy and intervention supports rather than spreading funds thinly across all buildings.

"Title 1 part a is the is the the largest bucket, and it serves at risk students," Lundberg said, describing the programmatic intent. He noted the district has used Title funds in recent years to sustain literacy coaches and other supports when grant funding that initially paid for them expired.

Lundberg explained operational choices the district is using to create flexibility: transfers between Title categories and twice-yearly amendment windows. He said some Title streams have different carryover rules and that moving funds into streams with higher carryover limits can create a cushion to sustain services through uncertainty.

Board members asked about how family engagement work is funded at grades 5'8; Lundberg said the district is using achievement-integration dollars for those buildings while concentrating Title-funded family engagement at the elementary (K'4) level. He also described required coverage for any school with a free-and-reduced lunch rate above 75% (a statutory requirement for Title eligibility the administration follows) and noted the ALC falls into that category and receives Title-funded positions.

The presentation closed with Lundberg saying the district will review transfers and amendments in the fall amendment window as final allocations firm up.