Title I

Title I is a federally-funded program that provides for additional instruction, staff development, supplies, or materials to improve student achievement (K-12). The goal of the Title I program is to raise the achievement levels of disadvantaged students on the Statewide Testing Program to parity with other students.

The goal of Title I Part A is to assist schools in providing a high-quality education for every child, so the program provides extra help to students who need it most.  These are children who are the furthest from meeting the standards the state has set for all children.  Title I resources are directed to schools with high poverty levels.

The program serves millions of children in elementary and secondary schools each year.  Most school districts participate.  Title I also serves children who attend parochial and private schools.  It is the largest federal aid program for our nation’s schools.  

How Title I Works

The federal government provides funding to states each year for Title I. To get funds, each state must submit a plan describing:

What all children are expected to know

The high-quality standards of performance that all children are expected to meet

Ways to measure progress

Money is sent to the school district based on the number of low-income families (data derived from free and reduced lunch information). The local School District identifies eligible schools – those with the highest percentage of children from low-income families – and provides Title I resources.

Title I Programs Generally Offer

• Smaller Classes

• Additional teachers and assistants

• Additional training for school staff

• Extra time for instruction

• A variety of teaching methods and materials

• Counseling and mentoring

• Career and college awareness

The Title I Program is reviewed each year by administrators, teachers and parents. If goals have not been met, they may revise the plans.

Two Types of Programs:

Schoolwide Programs - Schools with 40% or more of children from low-income families may develop schoolwide Title I programs to serve ALL students.  In this type of program, money from the Federal, State, and local agencies can be combined to improve school programs.

Targeted Assistance Program - Schools that may have at least 35% of its students from low-income families and choose to identify a specific group of its students to receive Title I services. In this type of program all money received from Title I must be utilized to provide extra help to only this group of eligible students.

Title II, Part A Improving Teacher Quality Grant

Title II, Part A Improving Educator Quality State Grants originally authorized as Eisenhower Professional Development and the Class Size Reduction programs under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965, was reauthorized in 2001 by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and in 2015 by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). While ESSA was authorized in December of 2015, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 extended the date by which certain parts of the Act would be effective. Further guidance has been provided by USDE in the form of Dear Colleague Letters and FAQs. In 2012 USDE allowed SEAs to submit Flexibility Waivers, per these FAQs all flexibility requests are null and void as of August 1, 2016.

Improving Teacher Quality State Grant funds are obtained by a State on the basis of the United States Department of Education’s (USDE) approval of either (1) an individual State plan as provided in Section 2112 of the ESEA (20 USC 2112) or (2) a consolidated application that includes the program, in accordance with Section 9302 of the ESEA (20 USC 7842).  Through the program, state and local educational agencies (SEAs and LEAs) receive funds using a USDE provided formula based on poverty and population.

The purpose of the Title II, Part A grant is

• to increase student achievement consistent with challenging State academic standards, 

• to improve the quality and effectiveness of teachers, principals and other school leaders, 

• to increase the number of teachers, principals and other school leaders who are effective in improving student academic achievement in schools, and

• to provide low-income and monitory student greater access to effective of teachers, principals and other school leaders

Title III, Language Instruction for English Learners and Immigrant Students

English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) is a state-funded instructional program for eligible English Learners (ELs) in grades K-12 (Georgia School Law Code 1981, § 20-2-156, enacted in 1985). The ESOL program is a standards-based curriculum emphasizing academic and social language development. ESOL coursework is based upon the WIDA Consortium English Language Development (ELD) standards. Classroom teachers integrate these ELD standards with the Georgia Performance Standards to enable ELs to both communicate in English and demonstrate their academic, social, and cultural proficiency. Instructional approaches, both in ESOL and general education classes, ensure that the needs of Georgia’s ELs are accommodated. To the extent practicable, it is appropriate to use the EL’s home language as a means of facilitating instruction and providing parents with school-related information.

Title III is a federally-funded program that provides eligible Local Education Agencies with funding to supplement those ESOL services already in place. School districts with large EL populations receive direct Title III allocations, while school districts with lower incidence populations are grouped into the “Georgia Title III Consortium”. The Title III Consortium allows these “low-incidence” districts to access Title III funds typically available only to districts with greater numbers of ELs. Both ESOL and Title III hold students accountable for progress in, and attainment of, English language proficiency. Upon attainment of English language proficiency, students exit from supplemental language services.

Dr. Shelley Fandel
Director Federal Programs

Email - shelley.fandel@gocats.org
Phone - (229) 671-6013
Fax- (229) 333-8594