Prekindergarten Early Start Grant

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Prekindergarten Early Start Grant

• Tier 1

2
History

• Prekindergarten Expansion Grant
• Currently in Cycle 14
• Formula Grant
• Based on number of students in original
  application
• Same districts each year
• Funding
• Same each year. Usually only enough to fund
  other ½ day

3
Challenges

• Compliance with Statute.
• Funding structure out of balance.
• Same each year even if growth or decline in
  enrollment.
• Same districts each year.

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Commissioners Rules

• Forums across the state.
• Input from stakeholders.
• Developed rules.
• Posted October 31, 2008.
• Public comment until December 1, 2008.
• new 19 TAC 102.1002, http//www.tea.state.tx.us/r
  ules/home/coeprop.html.

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Emphasis

• Quality
• A high quality early childhood education program
  is key to childrens school readiness and
  success.
• Defined in the RFA
• Partnerships
• 2005, 79th Texas Legislature, SB 23 requires
  certain
• state agencies to Coordinate early
  childhood services,
• Head Start, and after-school child care
  programs, and
• streamline funding, registration, and
  enrollment.
• TEC 29.1533, p. 201 Before establishing a new
  prekindergarten program, a school district shall
  consider the possibility of sharing use of an
  existing Head Start or other childcare program
  site as a prekindergarten site.

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Components of Rules

• Eligibility
• Funding
• Non-Negotiable
• Evaluation and Reporting

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Eligibility

• Almost ½ the districts in the state are eligible.
  
• Three Tiers
• Tier 1
• Tier 2
• Tier 3

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Tier 1

• Did not receive Cycle 14 Prekindergarten
  Expansion Grant.
• The average of the last three consecutive years
  of grade 3 TAKS scores in either reading or math
  must be below the state average.

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Tier 2

• Received Cycle 14 Prekindergarten Expansion
  Grant.
• Average of last three consecutive years of grade
  3 TAKS scores ABOVE the state average.

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Tier 3

• Received Cycle 14 Prekindergarten Expansion
  Grant.
• Average of last three consecutive years of grade
  3 TAKS scores BELOW the state average

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Funding

• Each has a maximum and a minimum dollar amount.
• Funding has been set aside for each tier.
• All dollar amounts are approximate at this time.

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Tier 1

• Competitive
• By statute, this tier will receive the largest
  percentage of the funds.
• Approximately 31.5 million.
• 5 years.
• Calculated at 900 per student.
• If all eligible districts applied, could fund
  55-60.

13
Tier 2

• More like a formula grant.
• Approximately 30.7 million.
• 3 years.
• If all eligible districts applied, all can be
  funded.

14
Tier 3

• Competitive
• Approximately 21.3 million.
• 2 years.
• If all eligible districts applied, 55-60 could
  be funded.

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Non-Negotiable

• Applies to all Tiers.
• There are some exceptions.
• Includes
• Implement proven school readiness components.
• Participate in School Readiness Certification
  System.
• Develop and implement a School Readiness
  Integration Plan.
• Develop strategies to sustain program.

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School Readiness Components

• High quality, developmentally appropriate, and
  rigorous curriculum.
• Continuous monitoring of student progress in the
  classroom.
• Professional development, including mentoring.
• Not stated but required by NCLB, certified
  teacher.

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Curriculum

• Prekindergarten Guidelines
• http//www.tea.state.tx.us/ed_init/pkguidelines/in
  dex.html
• Approved List
• http//www.tea.state.tx.us/textbooks/materials/bul
  letin/programs.pdf

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Monitoring Student Progress

• Commercial programs available such as mClass
  CIRCLE.
• Used in TEEM
• District Developed system.
• Should be guidelines in the RFA.

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Professional Development

• Ongoing, planned professional development.
• Includes ongoing mentoring.
• Can be a shared service arrangement.
• TEEM
• eCIRCLE Professional Development
• Mentoring

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TEEM

• Texas Early Education Model
• Developed by C.I.R.C.L.E.
• A proven model for delivering quality pre-k
  education
• Consists of
• Research-based curriculum
• Teacher administered progress monitoring
• High-quality teacher training with mentoring

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SCECD--Who

• Governor Perry named CIRCLE the State
• Center for Early Childhood Development
• CIRCLE Center for Improving the Readiness of
  Children for Learning and Education
• University of Texas Medical School Houston,
  Texas
• Department of Developmental Pediatrics
• Dr. Susan Landry Ph.D., Director
• CIRCLE is now part of the Children's Learning
  Institute.
• www.ChildrensLearningInstitute.org

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SCECD--What

• State Center for Early Childhood Development.
• charged by the 78th Texas Legislature to study
  the integration of early care and early education
  services for preschool children among public
  state pre-kindergarten, Head Start and licensed
  child care programs.

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SCECD--Role

• Should be outlined in the RFA.
• Provide TEEM components to those districts
  awarded PKES.

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TEEM--Curriculum

• TEA or SCECD Approved
• DLM Express
• Leap Frog
• Lets Begin
• Rigby-Pebble Soup
• Saxon
• Scholastic
• We Can!
• Doors to Discovery (CIRCLE approved)
• LEAP (CIRCLE approved))

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Other materials
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Other materials
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TEEMProgress Monitoring
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TEEMProgress Monitoring

• Administer at three scheduled assessment windows
  across the academic year
• Beginning, Middle, and End
• Use reports generated from assessment data to
• Obtain a class summary of all assessments
• Obtain individual student summaries of
  assessments
• Group children for specific activities and
  interventions
• Use recommended small group activities

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TEEMProfessional Development

• Two day CIRCLE Language and Literacy training
• One day Handheld training for use in gathering
  childrens assessments
• Ongoing Mentoring
• eCIRCLE Professional Development

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TEEMProfessional Development

• Nine online courses developed by CIRCLE
• Twenty 2 hour face to face meetings
• Regularly scheduled (4 consecutive face to
• face meetings followed by meetings every
• other week)
• Held throughout the school year
• Classes for Target 1 and Target 2 teachers
• Conducted by the Project Coordinators,
  Facilitators and/or Mentors
• Held in a computer lab setting

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TEEM--Mentoring

• Modeling instruction
• Side by side coaching
• Observation of instruction
• Instructional planning and implementation
• Reflective follow-up conference
• Room arrangement support

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TEEMMentoring

• Target 1 teachers will receive
• 4 hours of in-class mentoring.
• Target 2 teachers will receive
• 2 hours of in-class mentoring.
• Target 3 teachers will receive
• 1 hour of in-class mentoring.

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Prekindergarten Early Start Grant

• Tier 3
• Required to participate in TEEM with SCECD.
• Tier 1
• May choose to participate in TEEM with SCECD.
• May describe, in depth, alternate model that
  meets requirements of the RFA.

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School Readiness Certification System

• Will not need to use grant funds for
  participating.
• Non-TPRI/Tejas Lee Districts are exempt from this
  requirement.

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SRCWhat

• Voluntary web-based application that looks at
  early childhood education program and
  instructional approaches in preschool, and
  reading and social functioning of children in
  kindergarten.
• Texas licensed child care, school district
  prekindergarten, and Head Start programs
  participate in the system.

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SRC--Purpose

• Identify quality early childhood programs.
• Determine if early childhood education programs
  are getting children school ready
• Socially
• Emotionally
• Cognitively

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SRC Components

• Manage My School--One time set-up
• Manage My Students--Record attendance of students
• Facility Report--One time school report
• Teacher Self-Report--One time
• Kindergarten assessmentTPRI/Tejas Lee

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School Readiness Integration Plan

• Key principles of SRI Model
• Coordination of Prekindergarten, Head Start, and
  Child Care programs
• Prepare all children to enter kindergarten on or
  above grade level and keep them on grade level in
  kindergarten and beyond and
• Develop and implement an SRI model that is
  community-based and individualized to best serve
  each community effectively and efficiently

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SRIWho
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SRI--How

• Partner with Head Start and/or Child Care.
• ISD provides a certified teacher in the H.S. or
  C.C. classroom for ½ day.
• ISD counts eligible students on ADA.
• Head Start covers other ½ day to provide students
  a full day.
• Child Care provides wrap around care.
• Can be at the ISD or at the HS or CC.

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SRI--Exemption

• If absolutely nothing is available.
• Must document efforts to find partners.

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SRI

• Can be a shared service arrangement.
• High priority
• High scoring in grant.
• Final plan and MOU due September 1.

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SRIPossible Partners

• Head Start
• Brazos Valley CAA
• GET-CAP
• Alabama-Coushatta
• Hill Country CAA
• http//cli.uth.tmc.edu/our-programs/program-overvi
  ew/TX-head-start/thssco-map/map.htm
• Child Care
• Texas Workforce Commission
• DFPS website- http//www.dfps.state.tx.us/Child_Ca
  re/Search_Texas_Child_Care/CCLNET/Source/CPA/ppSea
  rchTXChildCare2.aspx
• ESCs can help find and establish these
  relationships.

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Sustainability

• How to continue program when grant is no longer
  available.
• Tier 15 years
• Tier 23 years
• Tier 32 years

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Expenditures

• Outlined in RFA
• Related to continuation of full-day program.
• Personnel.
• Curriculum.
• Equipment.
• Costs associated with developing plans and
  entering into integrated school readiness
  partnerships.
• Training.
• Indirect costs.

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Evaluation

• Yearly
• SRCS
• Outlined in RFA

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Application

• Traditional paper method.
• Download, complete and submit to the Division of
  Discretionary Grants.
• Mailed, hand-delivered or sent by courier.
• Must be received by the established deadline time
  and date.

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Timeline

• December 12Release of RFA
• Tier 1 due February 10, 2009
• Tier 2 and 3 due February 3, 2009
• http//burleson.tea.state.tx.us/GrantOpportunities
  /forms/GrantProgramSearch.aspx
• March, 2009Awards announced.
• September 1, 2009Final SRI plan and MOU due

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Shared Service Arrangements

• Please let me know today if you are interested in
  this possibility.
• Tammy Walker
• twalker_at_esc6.net
• 936-435-8360

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• "Many things we need can wait.
• The child cannot.
• Now is the time his bones are
• formed, his mind developed.
• To him we cannot say tomorrow, his name is
  today."
• Gabriela Mistral