5219490 Education, Office of the State Superintendent of - Notice of Final Rulemaking - Establishing and Implementing Requirements and Procedures for Career and Technical Education Grants
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THE OFFICE OF THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF EDUCATION
NOTICE OF FINAL RULEMAKING
The State Superintendent of Education, pursuant to the authority set forth in Section 3(b) of the District of Columbia State Education Office Establishment Act of 2000, effective October 21, 2000 (D.C. Law 13-176; D.C. Official Code § 38-2602(b)(11) (2012 Repl. & 2014 Supp.)); and the Fair Student Funding and School-Based Budgeting Amendment Act of 2013, effective February 22, 2014 (D.C. Law 20-87; D.C. Official Code §§ 38-2611 and 38-2612 (2014 Supp.)) hereby gives notice of the adoption of a new Chapter 70 (Career and Technical Education Grants) of Subtitle A (Office of the State Superintendent of Education or OSSE) of Title 5 (Education) of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMR), effective on the date of this notice in the D.C. Register.
The purpose of this rule is to establish regulations for the implementation of Career and Technical Education Grants to District of Columbia Public and Public Charter Schools from the Career and Technical Education Grant Program Fund, including promulgating application requirements, grant fund operations, accountability, and reporting requirements for the benefit of eligible grant recipients. The rule will allow the Office of the State Superintendent of Education to award grant funds for Local Education Agencies (LEAs) pursuing one or more of seven (7) strategies to improve career and technical education in the District, as identified in OSSE’s 2012 Strategic Plan found at http://osse.dc.gov/publication/career-and-technical-education-cte-strategic-plan.
This notice has been circulated throughout the District for a thirty (30) day period since its publication in the D.C. Register as a proposed rule on October 31, 2014, at 61 DCR 11433, including an opportunity to submit written comments. No written comments were received, no legal challenges were entered, no changes have been requested, and none have been made from the proposed rules published on October 31, 2014, as set forth below. The rule was adopted as final on December 4, 2014 and will become effective upon publication in the D.C. Register.
Title 5, EDUCATION, Subtitle A, OFFICE OF THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF EDUCATION, is amended by adding the following:
CHAPTER 70 CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION GRANTS
7000 GENERAL PROVISIONS
7000.1 This chapter establishes regulations governing the Career and Technical Education (CTE) grant program to be administered by the District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of Education (“OSSE”) pursuant to the Fair Student Funding and School-Based Budgeting Amendment Act of 2013, effective February 22, 2014 (D.C. Law 20-87; D.C. Official Code §§ 38-2611 and 38-2612) (2014 Supp.)).
7000.2 The CTE grant program shall be funded through the CTE Grant Program Fund established by the Act, and, as required by the Act, shall consist of revenue from one or more of the following sources:
(a) Annual appropriations, if any; and
(b) Grants, gifts, or subsidies from public or private sources.
7000.3 The CTE Grant Program Fund shall be used to provide supplemental funds to DCPS and to District public charter schools to support and enhance CTE programs.
7000.4 For each competitive grant cycle, OSSE shall make available a request for funding application (RFA).
7000.5 To be eligible for a competitive grant from the CTE Grant Program Fund, an applicant must:
(a) Be a District of Columbia Local Educational Agency (LEA);
(b) Provide all assurances required in the RFA, and
(c) Meet any other requirements set forth in the RFA.
7000.6 The maximum CTE grant funding for each competitive grant cycle shall be specified in the RFA.
7000.7 OSSE may award grants from the CTE Program Fund on a non-competitive basis, based on the terms or other requirements of the funding source or as otherwise permitted by applicable law or regulations. To be eligible for a non-competitive grant, the grantee must be a District of Columbia LEA.
7000.8 OSSE shall follow the pre-award and award process set forth in 1 DCMR Chapter 50, as may be amended.
7000.9 Grants awarded through the CTE grant program shall supplement, not supplant, any Formula, federal, or other funds received by a school for career and technical education.
7001 CTE GRANT PROGRAM FUND
7001.1 Revenue in the CTE Grant Program Fund from annual appropriations shall be used to make grants under this Chapter with purposes including, but not limited to, one or more of the following:
(a) Aligning programs of study (POS) with high-demand, high-skill, and high-wage occupations;
(b) Establishing rigorous CTE program quality requirements;
(c) Increasing CTE student concentration and completion rates;
(d) Implementing a CTE transfer program;
(e) Affording LEAs flexibility in hiring, scheduling, assessing, and compensating CTE faculty;
(f) Reengaging disconnected youth and educationally disengaged youth through CTE programs; and
(g) Supporting and incentivizing CTE course offerings for adult students in alternative educational programs.
7001.2 Revenue in the CTE Grant Program Fund from public or private grants, gifts, or subsidies shall be used under the terms provided by the public or private source, conditional on OSSE approval in alignment with District CTE priorities.
7001.3 OSSE reserves the authority to define the terms of CTE Grants in the RFA for each CTE Grant competition.
7002 APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
7002.1 Only a designated official of an LEA may submit a grant application on behalf of an applicant school.
7002.2 All required documentation specified in the RFA shall be included with the application. An incomplete application shall be disqualified and will not be reviewed.
7003 GRANT AWARD NOTIFICATION
7003.1 OSSE shall prepare and issue a grant award notification to each LEA for which an application has been approved or for which a sole-source award has been made. The grant award notification shall:
(a) Incorporate the terms of the RFA by reference, where applicable;
(b) State the amount of the grant; and
(c) Indicate the period during which the grantee may obligate grant funds.
7004 ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
7004.1 A CTE Grant recipient shall submit periodical written reports during the grant period and a final written report after the end of the grant award period. The reporting frequency and the content of the reports will be described in the RFA or the grant award notification.
7004.2 A CTE Grant recipient shall:
(a) Submit a written request and obtain written approval from OSSE before expending CTE Grant funds for a purpose that was not included in the original approved budget;
(b) Submit a written request and a modified budget for any proposed spending modification;
(c) Maintain accurate and complete records of all activities supported by the grant for three (3) years after the end of the grant period or as otherwise specified;
(d) Maintain records that document initial and periodic assessments, initial and periodic plans, and the ongoing progress of program activities; and
(e) Ensure confidentiality and prevent unauthorized access to records. Programs shall maintain all records, including required reports, documents and files on-site, in a properly secured cabinet or location. Records shall be accessed by authorized personnel only.
7004.3 OSSE may monitor a CTE Grant recipient during the grant period. OSSE’s monitoring may include scheduled and unscheduled visits to the CTE Grant recipient’s facility or principal place of business.
7004.4 A CTE Grant recipient shall fully cooperate with authorized representatives of the Government of the District of Columbia, including OSSE, and shall provide them access to facilities, staff, records, and other information related to the grant upon request, to the extent allowed by applicable law.
7005 TERMINATION OR REMEDIAL PROCEDURES
7005.1 If a grantee fails to comply with the terms of the grant award or applicable federal or District of Columbia laws or regulations, OSSE may, after giving reasonable written notice to the grantee, terminate the grant in whole or in part and/or, in its discretion, require the grantee to take remedial action to ensure compliance. In the absence of extenuating circumstances, reasonable notice shall be no less than thirty (30) calendar days.
7005.2 OSSE shall provide to grantee written notice of termination and, if applicable, required remedial action. The notice shall state with specificity the reasons for the termination or required remedial action, the specific remedial action required of the grantee, and the effective date of the termination or implementation of the remedial action.
7005.3 OSSE may in its discretion make the termination effective in less than thirty (30) days, if a delayed effective date would be unreasonable under the circumstances, taking into consideration the responsibility to protect the District government’s interest.
7005.4 A grant that has been terminated may be reinstated if the grantee has taken all required corrective action satisfactory to OSSE by the effective date provided in the written notice of termination, or given satisfactory evidence that all required corrective action will be taken.
7005.5 A grantee may request review of a decision by OSSE to terminate the grant or to require remedial action. A request for review must be submitted in writing to OSSE at any time before the effective date of the termination or required remedial action, or within thirty (30) calendar days of the date the grantee received notice of termination, whichever is longer. The written request for review shall include the following:
(a) A concise statement of facts regarding each specified reason for the termination or required remedial action;
(b) The specific basis for contesting each reason;
(c) The specific relief requested; and
(d) Two (2) copies of all documentary evidence supporting the grantee’s positions.
7005.6 Review of the grantee’s request shall be performed by an OSSE employee selected by the State Superintendent of Education and such person shall not have participated in the award of the grant or the decision to terminate the grant. The decision of the reviewer shall be final.
7099 DEFINITIONS
“Budget” means the financial plan for the project or program approved by OSSE during the award period. The budget may include funding for the project or program other than funds awarded from the CTE Grant Program Fund, as determined by OSSE.
“Career and Technical Education (CTE)” means education that prepares students for a wide range of careers and further educational opportunities. These careers may require varying levels of education—including industry-recognized credentials, postsecondary certificates, and two- and four-year degrees. CTE equips students with core academic skills, employability skills, and job-specific, technical skills related to a specific career pathway.
“Completion rate” means the percentage of CTE Concentrators who, within four (4) years, have completed a three (3) or four (4) course sequence program of study. A CTE Concentrator is a student who has completed two (2) courses of a three-sequence program of study, or three (3) courses of a four-sequence program of study.
“Concentration rate” means the percentage of CTE Participants who have completed two courses (2) of a three-sequence program of study, or three (3) courses of a four-sequence program of study. A CTE Participant is a student who has completed the first (1st) course, and enrolled in the second (2nd) course of a three or four-sequence program of study.
“CTE transfer program” means a program or partnership across LEAs and/or within multi-campus LEAs that enables students to complete CTE coursework on school campuses other than their own without requiring a change in their full-time enrollment.
“Disconnected youth” means DC residents aged sixteen to twenty-four (16-24) years who are living below two hundred (200%) percent of the federal poverty threshold and who are not in school and not working.
“Educationally disengaged youth” means DC residents aged sixteen to twenty-four (16-24) years who are not enrolled in an educational program and who do not have a high school diploma or its equivalent.
“High-demand occupations” means occupations with a projected ten-year (10) growth rate above that of all occupations AND having at least fifty (50) or more total annual openings (growth and replacement) in the District of Columbia.
“High-skill occupations” means occupations with education or training requirements of: long-term on-the-job training lasting one (1) or more years; work experience in a related occupation; industry recognized certification or credential; postsecondary career and technical training; associate’s degree; bachelor’s degree; master’s degree; doctoral degree; or first professional degree.
“High-wage occupations” means occupations that pay or lead to positions paying at least the median hourly wage or the median annual wage for all occupations in the District of Columbia.
“OSSE” means the Office of the State Superintendent of Education for the District of Columbia.
“Local Educational Agency” or “LEA” means a public agency having administrative control and direction of a public elementary or secondary school in the District of Columbia. The terms include the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) and District of Columbia public charter schools.
“Program of study” means a sequence of instruction (based on recommended standards and knowledge and skills) consisting of coursework, co-curricular activities, work-site learning, service learning and other learning experiences. This sequence of instruction provides preparation for a career.
“Subsidy” means monetary resources designated to supplement a project or program or to effect a reduction in the regular cost of goods or services for a project or program.
“Termination” means the end of the award, in whole or in part, at any time prior to the planned end of the period of the award.
