ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island
Summary
This is Rhode Island's State Plan for the American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) Fund, on the Department of Education template issued April 21, 2021. The template says the ARP ESSER Fund provides nearly $122 billion to States. The cover page lists Ana Riley, Deputy Commissioner for Instructional Programs, as the SEA contact and carries the date June 30, 2021. The plan states that for the 2020-2021 school year enrollment in Rhode Island public schools decreased by 3.1 percentage points, or about 4,000 students, and that the share of students chronically, excessively, or mostly absent rose from 19 to 26 percent.
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Cite this document
“ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island.”
Original at www.ed.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/department-of-education-pdf-www-ed-gov-77375bc871/
, SHA-256 fc0db35ee95f88095ac497bdc930c2ec967adac1c396aeceab7d1bd89464a418.Full text
State Plan for the
American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund
U.S. Department of Education
Issued: April 21, 2021
OMB Number: 1810-0754
Expiration Date: October 31, 2021
Paperwork Burden Statement According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to
respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB
control number for this information collection is 1810-0754. Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 100 hours per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching
existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of
information. The obligation to respond to this collection is required to obtain or retain benefit under Section 2001 of
the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP Act). If you have any comments concerning the accuracy of the time
estimate, suggestions for improving this individual collection, or if you have comments or concerns regarding the
status of your individual form, application or survey, please contact Britt Jung, Office of State and Grantee
Relations, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue,
SW, Washington, DC 20202-6450, email: SGR@ed.gov directly.
Introduction
The American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (“ARP
ESSER”) Fund, authorized under the American Rescue Plan (“ARP”) Act of 2021, provides
nearly $122 billion to States to support the Nation’s schools in safely reopening and sustaining
safe operations of schools while meeting the academic, social, emotional, and mental health
needs of students resulting from the coronavirus disease 2019 (“COVID-19”) pandemic. It is
particularly important that ARP ESSER funding will enable States and local educational
agencies (“LEAs”), and more directly schools, to support students who have been most severely
impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and are likely to have suffered the most because of
longstanding inequities in our communities and schools that have been exacerbated by the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The U.S. Department of Education (“Department”) is committed to working in partnership with
States so that these unprecedented resources are quickly put to work to ensure students have
sustained access to in-person instruction and that the resources are used to provide the effective
support students need as they persist through and recover from the impacts of the COVID-19
pandemic. The thoughtful and timely use of these funds will have a lasting impact on our
Nation’s schools and help to address the inequities in resources, services, and opportunities
available to our students.
This template presents an opportunity for States to share their plans for the use of ARP ESSER
funds with the public. The Department must approve a State educational agency’s (“SEA’s”)
plan in order to make the State’s remaining ARP ESSER allocation available for use. Please note
that the Department intends to issue ARP ESSER reporting requirements separately.
Instructions
Each SEA must provide descriptions and other information that address each requirement listed
below. An SEA may use this template or another format as long as every item and element is
addressed in the SEA’s response. Throughout this document, questions that refer to an SEA’s
ARP ESSER funding are referencing the total allocation to be received by the SEA, including
that which it allocates to its LEAs.
Each SEA must submit to the Department by June 7, 2021, either: (1) its ARP ESSER plan or
(2) the State requirements that preclude submission of the plan by that date and a date by which
it will be able to submit its complete ARP ESSER plan.
To submit the SEA’s plan, please email the plan to your Program Officer at
[State].OESE@ed.gov (e.g., Alabama.OESE@ed.gov).
In order to ensure transparency, the Department will post each plan on the Department’s website
when it is received and will indicate each plan’s approval status.
This template also allows States to fulfill the requirement of the Coronavirus Response and
Relief Supplemental Appropriations (“CRRSA”) Act ESSER II 6-month reporting requirement
in section 313(f) of the CRRSA Act.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 2
Cover Page
Grantee and Contact Information
ARP ESSER PR Award Number (e.g., S425U2100XX):
SEA Contact: Ana Riley, Deputy Commissioner for Instructional Programs
Telephone: 401-222-8700
Email address: Ana.Riley@ride.ri.gov
By signing this document, I agree to each of the assurances listed in Appendix C and further
assure that:
To the best of my knowledge and belief, all information and data included in this plan are true
and correct.
Chief State School Officer or Authorized Representative
Angélica Infante-Green
Signature of Authorized SEA Representative Date:
June 30, 2021
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 3
A. Describing the State’s Current Status and Needs
The Department recognizes the extraordinary efforts made by States, LEAs, and educators to
support students during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this section, SEAs will describe the
progress they have made, the priorities and student needs guiding their ARP ESSER funding
decisions, and their current and projected operating status.
1. Progress and Promising Practices: Provide your assessment of the top 2-3
strategies that have been most effective in supporting the needs of students in
your State during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially for students most impacted
by the COVID-19 pandemic. Please include, if applicable, how your State will
submit and encourage its LEAs to submit lessons learned and best practices to the
Department’s Safer Schools and Campuses Best Practices Clearinghouse so that
they can be shared with other States and LEAs.
Rhode Island was one of only a select few states that reopened schools at full capacity based on CDC
guidance. This was achieved through continued collaboration, robust testing, layered mitigation, and
flexibility from school leaders, teachers, students, and families. The Rhode Island Department of
Education (RIDE) employed the following strategies:
Communication and Coordination
Every district worked with a designated RIDE point of contact through a “pod” structure for technical
assistance and support. The point of contact helped troubleshoot any number of obstacles related to
instruction, facilities, transportation, PPE, and social-emotional supports, among others. RIDE, in
collaboration with a local nonprofit set up a help desk "hotline" so that there was a centralized way for
teachers, students, and families to receive tech support.
Addressing Inequity
To address the barriers to Wi-Fi coverage and access to the internet—especially in low-income
communities—RIDE worked to secure student laptops, free Wi-Fi hotspots, and cell phone service from
the four most common providers in the state.
Foreseeing inevitable need for acceleration due to lost instruction time, Rhode Island public schools had
the opportunity to expand upon teaching and learning for their students through face-to-face summer
camps and the Summer Academy for Interactive Learning (SAIL) program in Summer 2020. Both urban
and suburban students collectively participated. Students participated in creating many of the offerings.
The Rhode Island Department of Education provided statewide summer programing for over 14,000
Rhode Island students with access to a range of academic and enrichment opportunities along with
project-based learning and student-led seminars.
Robust Testing & Layered Mitigation
To support in-person learning, RIDE released Back to School RI: Health and Safety Guidance to Reopen
Rhode Island's Elementary and Secondary Schools in partnership with the Rhode Island Department of
Health (RIDOH) in June 2020. This provided guidance on the requirements that school systems would
use to plan for reopening in Fall 2020. The document outlined four reopening scenarios (full in-person
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 4
for all, partial in-person, limited in-person, and full distance learning), guidance on class and group size
limits, and cleanliness protocols. The state recognized that testing and contact tracing would be critical
in reopening schools in-person safely and announced the creation of the Education Operations Center
(EdOC). The center was staffed by RIDE, RIDOH, the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency,
Rhode Island Public Transit Authority, and the Rhode Island National Guard to deploy to schools during
an outbreak as well as to support rapid testing and contact tracing.
2. Overall Priorities: Provide your assessment of the top 2-3 issues currently facing
students and schools across your State as a result of or in response to the COVID-
19 pandemic including, to the extent possible, data illustrating why these are the
most critical and/or most widespread issues facing schools and students.
Enrollment / Attendance1
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, RIDE data show that overall enrollment has decreased from the 2019-
2020 school year to the 2020-2021 school year, with the early grades reflecting the greatest impact.
For the 2020-2021 school year, enrollment in Rhode Island public schools has decreased by 3.1
percentage points, or about 4,000 students. Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten have
experienced the largest decrease in enrollment (26 percent and 9 percent, respectively).
Enrollment in most other grades decreased by 3 to 4 percent, with the exception of slight
increases in enrollment in grades 11 and 12. With federal and state funding tied to student
enrollment, district budgets are adversely affected by decreases in enrollment.2
Absences have increased by almost 50 percent across Rhode Island schools, with greater concentration
and greater percentages of chronic absenteeism in high-poverty schools compared to low-poverty
schools.
Along with the increase in total number of absences, the percentage of students who are
chronically, excessively, or mostly absent (see Figure 1) has also increased from 19 to 26 percent
from 2019-2020 to 2020-2021. Schools with the highest poverty levels show the highest
proportion of chronically absent students. Across the board, students of color, multilingual
learners, and differently-abled students were more chronically absent compared to their peers,
especially when they were enrolled in high-poverty schools, as these communities have been
the most impacted by the pandemic.
1
Enrollment and attendance data generated by RIDE represent a snapshot from the data available on
February 11, 2021.
2
Lee, V., Gutierrez, E., & Blagg, K. (2020, October 6). Declining School Enrollment Spells Trouble for
Education Funding. The Urban Institute. https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/declining-school-enrollmentspells-
trouble-education-funding
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 5
Figure 1.
ABSENCE RATE CATEGORIES:
Low: absent fewer than 5 percent of schooldays
Moderate: absent between 5 percent and 10 percent of schooldays
Chronic: absent between 10 percent and 20 percent of schooldays
Excessive: absent between 20 percent and 50 percent of schooldays
Mostly absent: absent more than 50 percent of schooldays
Academic Achievement
RIDE used ESSER I funds to purchase statewide interim assessments in order to have data on student
achievement. Academic achievement during the pandemic has been lower than what is typically
expected. Figure 2 shows that students’ reading performance was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic,
with higher percentages of students performing one or more grade levels below in the 2020-2021 school
year compared to the previous school year. Students’ math performance was similarly affected, as
shown in Figure 3. Across kindergarten through grade eight in a sample of 14 LEAs, higher percentages
of students of color, differently-abled students, multilingual learners, and students eligible for free or
reduced-price lunch were behind in reading and math compared to their white peers. The existing
performance gaps for these populations — which were already significant — have grown larger during
the pandemic.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 6
Figure 2.3
Figure 3.4
3
Data is based on assessments delivered in the fall of each school year and is aggregated for grades kindergarten
through eight.
4
Data is based on assessments delivered in the fall of each school year and is aggregated for grades kindergarten
through eight.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 7
3. Identifying Needs of Underserved Students: Describe your State’s 2-3 highest
priority academic, social, emotional, and/or mental health needs for the remainder
of the 2020-2021 school year (if applicable) and for the 2021-2022 school year
related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on each of the following student
groups:
i. Students from low-income families,
ii. Students from each racial or ethnic group (e.g., identifying
disparities and focusing on underserved student groups by race or
ethnicity),
iii. Gender (e.g., identifying disparities and focusing on underserved
student groups by gender),
iv. English learners,
v. Children with disabilities (including infants, toddlers, children, and
youth with disabilities eligible under the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (“IDEA”)),
vi. Students experiencing homelessness,
vii. Children and youth in foster care,
viii. Migratory students, and
ix. Other groups disproportionately impacted by the pandemic that have
been identified by the SEA (e.g., youth involved in the criminal
justice system, students who have missed the most in-person
instruction during the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years,
students who did not consistently participate in remote instruction
when offered during school building closures, and LGBTQ+
students).
To the extent possible, this description should include data on indicators such as
estimates of the academic impact of lost instructional time,5 chronic
absenteeism, student engagement, and social-emotional well-being.
RIDE maintains that enrollment/attendance and academic achievement are the two most pressing
issues facing all Rhode Island students. As described in A.2 above, Rhode Island has seen that different
student groups have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic on these metrics alone.
Students from low-income families: Across kindergarten through grade eight in a sample of 14
LEAs, higher percentages of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch were behind in
reading and math. Schools with the highest poverty levels show the highest proportion of
chronically absent students.
Students from underserved racial/ethnic groups: Across kindergarten through grade eight in a
sample of 14 LEAs, higher percentages of Black and Latino students were behind in reading and
math compared to their white peers. Across the board, students of color were more chronically
absent compared to their peers (Figure 4).
5
For the purposes of the plan, “academic impact of lost instructional time” refers to “learning loss” experienced by
students as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, as referenced in the ARP Act and the CRRSA Act.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 8
Figure 4.
Students by gender: RIDE has not yet observed significant disparities in attendance and
achievement by gender, and will revisit this with regards to summative state assessment results.
However, state culture and climate survey data show that in 2020-2021, transgender students in
middle and high school have felt less engaged, less supported social-emotionally, and less
positive about school climate compared to their cisgender peers.
English Learners: In addition to addressing chronic absence and low student achievement, RIDE
recognizes that more considerations must be given to support English Learners, including:
o Intentional Grouping of Multilingual Learners – strategically group students in both
heterogeneous and homogenous groups, based on needs.
o Learning Time for Students and Educators – provide professional learning time for
educators and enrichment opportunities for students.
o Expanding Dual Language Programs – prioritize expanding, scaling, and growing dual
language programs in each LEA for multilingual learners.
Children with Disabilities: Universal screening will be necessary for all students, and will be
particularly important for differently-abled students. For those differently-abled students
identified as needing additional support, LEAs must prioritize targeted, intensive intervention
that is research-based and supported with routine progress monitoring.
Students Experiencing Homelessness: In addition to addressing chronic absence and low
achievement, RIDE as the SEA will expand funds to increase the number of eligible LEAs that
receive support for direct services to students experiencing homelessness.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 9
RIDE is committed to taking action to support the above student groups, including students in foster
care and migratory youth by addressing the most pressing needs resulting from chronic absenteeism
and lost instructional time. RIDE aims to:
Energize school communities through the launch of a statewide back-to-school campaign, with
particular attention to students who are chronically absent and overaged-under credited.
o Launch a targeted whole-of-state campaign and communications toolkit in multiple
languages to reengage our school communities about returning to school safely.
o Reengage and empower chronically absent youth and youth who are overaged-under
credited, as well as the students who have fallen out of our state systems.
o Highlight the importance of participating in summer programming and extended
learning offerings, including before and after school, and out-of-school opportunities.
o Elevate the power of coming together for common, shared experiences on social-
emotional wellness.
o Explicitly use summer programming as an opportunity to uplift youth voice and
reengage youth and their families in the schooling experience.
Ensure all students have access to high-quality instruction as well as personalized support from
adults, through extended learning, partnerships for before and after school, and summer
learning opportunities that are undergirded by high-quality materials and resources.
o Commit to every child and every family having access to at least one high-quality
extended learning opportunity this summer.
o Ensure that every urban student, multilingual learner, and differently-abled student in
Rhode Island is enrolled and engaged in quality summer learning opportunities that,
ideally, are designed specifically to serve them and their specific needs.
o Recruit and expand staff to provide in-school and expanded learning opportunities, with
a focus on activating adults within local communities.
o In planning for any expanded learning programming, prioritize student centered design
and the values of voice and choice, flexibility, and access.
o Forge intentional partnerships between LEAs and community-based organizations
(CBOs), recognizing their respective strengths, sharing unique expertise, and
collaborating to ensure more fluid data sharing and seamless post-summer transitions.
Universally screen all students and align resources to need.
o In the coming year, universally screen all students both academically and social-
emotionally, and target resources based on need and urgency.
o Plan and allocate resources with a clear and focused priority for supports and staffing
related to every urban student, multilingual learner, and differently-abled student.
o Root all solutions in high-quality instructional materials, professional learning for
educators, and positive, productive relationships with students.
o Center all actions from an orientation of cultural responsiveness and antiracism that
promotes SEL and wellness.
o Focus on building and sustaining adult capacity to work in teams to support students
holistically through a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) lens.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 10
4. Understanding the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Describe how the SEA
will support its LEAs in identifying the extent of the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on student learning and student well-being, including identifying the
groups of students most impacted by the pandemic. Where possible, please
identify the data sources the SEA will suggest its LEAs use in thoughtfully
diagnosing areas of need, including data on the academic, social, emotional, and
mental health impacts of lost instructional time.
In the immediate, RIDE will continue a point of contact structure to support LEAs’ development of
applications for COVID-19 relief funds, including using all data sources available to identify the impact of
the pandemic on student learning and student well-being. LEAs should consider disaggregated data
along student groups (multilingual learners, differently-abled students, FRPL, McKinney-Vento, students
of color, and other descriptive statistics), using data sources including, but not limited to:
Interim assessments
SurveyWorks administration (Rhode Island’s statewide school culture and climate survey)
Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System (RICAS) ELA and Math for Grades 3-8
PSAT10 (Grade 10)
SAT (Grade 11)
ACCESS 2.0 for English Language Learners
Dynamic Learning Maps Alternate Assessment – ELA and Math for Grades 3-8 and 11; Science
for Grades 5, 8, 11
Rhode Island Next Generation Science Assessment (NGSA)
Universal screeners for both academic and social-emotional needs
Also, LEAs are expected to disaggregate their attendance and enrollment data to unearth patterns not
readily discernable and think about needs across the student learning experiences during SY19-20 and
SY20-21, be it full in-person, hybrid, or distance modes of instruction.
RIDE will encourage LEAs to also use any locally administered assessments and internal qualitative data
collections to gauge students’ academic, social-emotional, and mental health needs due to lost
instructional time. RIDE has made a formal request to waive accountability this year. Therefore, data
stories and data visualization created at the SEA-level will be paramount, and RIDE’s points of contact
will work intentionally with LEAs to understand the nuanced assessment data from the 2020-2021
school year. Thus far, Rhode Island has had a 90% participation rate for students assessed using RICAS.
RIDE also employs DataCenter dashboards that enhance SEA ability and capacity to consistently support
the field. RIDE commits to providing technical support and training for LEAs to better report data to the
SEA, and use the data available to them.
5. School Operating Status: It is essential to have data on how students are learning
in order to support the goals of access and equity, especially for student groups
that have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Describe
the current status of data collection on operational status and mode of instruction
of all schools in your State. This description must include:
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 11
i. A description of to what extent, and how frequently, the State
collects now and will collect in the future data for all schools in your
State on:
a. Mode of instruction: The number of schools in your State that are
offering fully remote or online-only instruction; both
remote/online and in-person instruction (hybrid model); and/or
full-time in-person instruction;
As of September 2020, RIDE has regularly collected data indicating whether schools and LEAs were fully
remote, hybrid, or fully in-person. For SY2021-22, RIDE will continue to collect mode of instruction data
for students reported with a date range for each mode: remote, hybrid, or in-person, e.g. “Student John
Doe – 100% in person from 9/1/2021 to 12/01/2021.”
b. Enrollment: Student enrollment for all students and
disaggregated for each of the student groups described in A.3.i-
viii for each mode of instruction; and
RIDE collects student enrollment daily. It is reported out at regular intervals during the year and
snapshots of data disaggregated by student group or by mode of instruction are generated as needed.
c. Attendance: Student attendance for all students and
disaggregated for each of the student groups described in A.3.i-
viii for each mode of instruction.
At the student level, daily attendance data is collected. For SY2021-22, RIDE will continue to collect daily
attendance data, but mode of instruction will be reported with a date range for each mode: remote,
hybrid, or in-person, e.g. “Student John Doe – 100% in person from 9/1/2021 to 12/01/2021.”
ii. The data described in A.5.i.a. and b. using the template in Appendix
A (and to the extent available, tdata described in A.5.i.c.) for the
most recent time period available. Please note that this data can be
submitted separately within 14 calendar days after a State submits
this plan. The SEA must also make this data publicly available on its
website as soon as possible but no later than June 21, 2021, and
regularly provide updated available information on its website. The
Department will periodically review data listed in A.5.i on SEA
websites.
For data described in A.5.i.a., see Appendix A Tables 1a-f. For data described in A.5.i.b, see Appendix A
Table 2. For data described in A.5.i.c, please visit RIDE’s public attendance dashboard.
iii. To the extent available, a description of the planned operational
status and mode of instruction for the State and its LEAs for Summer
2021 and for the 2021-2022 school year.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 12
All LEAs will be expected to provide full in-person learning for all students during Summer 2021 and for
the 2021-2022 school year. Distance learning options may be made available by LEAs for students who
have underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk for COVID-19.
B. Safely Reopening Schools and Sustaining their Safe Operations
The Department recognizes that safely reopening schools and sustaining their safe operations
to maximize in-person instruction is essential for student learning and student well-being,
and especially for being able to address the educational inequities that have been worsened
by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this section, SEAs will describe how they will support their
LEAs in this vital area.
1. Support for LEAs: Describe how the SEA will support its LEAs in safely
returning to in-person instruction and sustaining the safe operation of schools.
This description must include:
i. How the SEA will support its LEAs implementing, to the greatest
extent practicable, prevention and mitigation policies in line with the
most up-to-date guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (“CDC”) for the reopening and operation of school
facilities to effectively maintain the health and safety of students,
educators, and other staff;
Complete the table below, adding rows as necessary, or provide a narrative description.
LEAs in Rhode Island have been open for full in-person learning as early as September 2020. As a result,
a significant amount of the supports listed below began during Summer 2020 as LEAs prepared to open
and continued to remain open throughout the school year. During Summer 2020, RIDE and the Rhode
Island Department of Health (RIDOH) created a comprehensive guidebook and reopening framework to
assist LEAs with planning. Additionally, 100% of LEAs submitted reopening plans for multiple scenarios
over the summer and the SEA provided feedback on every plan. In addition, RIDE and RIDOH also
reviewed over 50 private school plans.
During the 2020-2021 school year, the SEA partnered with RIDOH to provide bi-weekly “Pod Meetings”
so all LEAs could learn of updated or new guidance, engage in question-and-answer sessions, and learn
from one another. An Education Operations Center (EdOC) was established to provide 24/7 support for
LEAs’ health and safety efforts.
Since all Rhode Island LEAs are currently open for at least hybrid instruction and most are open for full
in-person learning already, the state anticipates LEAs will need lower levels of health- and safety-
specific support during this summer and next school year.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 13
Table B1.
Mitigation strategy SEA response
Universal and correct wearing For the 2020-21 school year, masks were required for K-12 settings. Mask guidance continues to be updated
of masks and shared with LEAs. The SEA created a master price agreement and roster of suppliers for LEAs to use when
purchasing PPE and worked with local emergency management agency to distribute multiple rounds of adult
and student masks to all LEAs.
Physical distancing Written guidance created and shared with LEAs. Updated as CDC guidelines have been revised. (Last Updated
6/2/21)
Handwashing and respiratory Written guidance created and shared with LEAs. Updated as CDC guidelines have been revised. (Last Updated
etiquette 6/2/21)
Cleaning and maintaining Written guidance created and shared with LEAs, available here. Updated as CDC guidelines have been revised.
healthy facilities, including During Summer 2020, building walkthroughs were conducted in every public school using a common checklist.
improving ventilation Ventilation specific guidance was published 10/2020. SEA co-hosted technical assistance sessions with
ventilation experts and RIDOH doctors to support SEAs in maintaining healthy facilities. In November 2020,
EdOC worked directly with LEAs to procure and distribute state-purchased portable air filtration units for any
classroom in the state that required them.
Contact tracing in combination Ongoing weekly collaboration between EdOC, SEA, and RIDOH’s designated K-12 case investigation and
with isolation and quarantine, contact tracing team. Each LEA assigned to a regional pod with a designated staff from RIDOH and the EdOC
in collaboration with the State, to assist with contact tracing. Schools empowered to conduct their own contact tracing using state templates
local, territorial, or Tribal and resources, allowing RIDOH to confirm contact tracing list and make quarantine decisions.
health departments
Diagnostic and screening Thirteen PK-12 testing sites established to provide easy statewide access to testing and results. In January of
testing 2021, all LEAs were provided with training and resources to conduct their own asymptomatic testing
programs. Additionally, the EdOC and RIDOH provided mobile testing events at schools as requested. Written
guidance created and shared with LEAs. Updated as CDC guidelines have been revised. (Last updated 4/4/21)
Efforts to provide vaccinations SEA worked directly with RIDOH and local municipalities to establish vaccine clinics for all educational staff
to educators, other staff, and and eligible students. Student vaccine clinics were held within schools.
students, if eligible
Appropriate accommodations In August 2020, SEA published written guidance on reopening and supporting differently-abled students.
for children with disabilities Technical assistance sessions were conducted during Summer 2020 and throughout the school year for staff
with respect to the health and planning for and working with this population. The state will support LEAs with technical assistance questions
safety policies beyond the 2020-2021 school year with the expectation that the requirements of Section 504 and IDEA for
the provision of reasonable accommodations will be fulfilled.
ARP ESSER State Plan – Rhode Island – 14
ii. Any Statewide plans, policies, estimated timelines, and specific
milestones related to reopening and operation of school facilities,
including any mechanisms the SEA will use to track, monitor, or
enforce their implementation;
LEAs in Rhode Island have been open for full in-person learning as early as September 2020. As a result,
a significant amount of the supports listed in Table B1 began during Summer 2020 as LEAs prepared to
open and continued throughout the school year.
During Summer 2020, RIDE and the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) created a
comprehensive guidebook and reopening framework to assist LEAs with planning. Additionally, 100% of
LEAs submitted reopening plans for multiple scenarios over the summer and the SEA provided feedback
on every plan.
On June 30, 2021, RIDE and RIDOH released updated PreK-12 Health and Safety Guidance for the 2021-
2022 School Year. In alignment with this guidance, all LEAs will be expected to provide full in-person
learning for all students during Summer 2021 and for the 2021-2022 school year.
iii. To what extent the SEA and its LEAs consult with Federal, State,
and local health officials. This description should include, if
available, whether the SEA and its LEAs have received support for
screening testing from their State or local health department based
on funding awarded by the CDC; and
RIDOH was awarded the ELC grant for approximately $30M; the primary focus of this grant is screening
testing. RIDE and the EdOC are on the design and planning team for implementation in Summer 2021
through the 2021-2022 school year.
iv. Any guidance, professional learning, and technical assistance
opportunities the SEA will make available to its LEAs.
Since all of Rhode Island’s LEAs are currently open for at least hybrid instruction and most are open for
full in-person learning already, RIDE anticipates LEAs will need lower levels of health- and safety- specific
support during this summer and next school year. RIDE, in collaboration with RIDOH, has recently
revised its health and safety guidance for schools, and will continue to revise written guidance in
accordance with updated CDC guidelines.
2. Safe Return to In-Person Instruction and Continuity of Services Plans: Describe
how the SEA will ensure that its LEAs that receive ARP ESSER funds meet the
requirements in section 2001(i) of the ARP Act and the requirements relating to
the ARP ESSER funds published in the Federal Register and available at
https://oese.ed.gov/offices/american-rescue-plan/american-rescue-plan-
elementary-and-secondary-school-emergency-relief/ (ARP ESSER requirements)
to either: (a) within 30 days of receipt of the funds, develop and make publicly
available on the LEA’s website a plan for the safe return to in-person instruction
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and continuity of services, or (b) have developed and made publicly available on
the LEA’s website such a plan that meets statutory requirements before the
enactment of the ARP Act, including:
i. How the SEA will ensure that each LEA plan includes, or will be
modified to include, the extent to which it has adopted policies and a
description of any such policies on each of the strategies listed in
table B1;
ii. How the SEA will ensure that each LEA plan describes how it will
ensure continuity of services including but not limited to services to
address the students’ academic needs, and students’ and staff social,
emotional, mental health, and other needs, which may include
student health and food services;
iii. How the SEA will ensure that the LEA periodically reviews, no less
frequently than every six months for the duration of the ARP ESSER
grant period (i.e., through September 30, 2023),6 and revises as
appropriate, its plan, and how the SEA will ensure that the LEA
seeks public input, and takes such input into account on (1) whether
revisions are necessary and, if so, (2) the revisions to the plan; and
iv. Describe, to the extent the SEA collects it, information about LEA
implementation, to the greatest extent practicable, of each element of
the most up-to-date CDC guidance listed in table B1 and its LEAs’
needs for support and technical assistance to implement strategies
consistent, to the greatest extent practicable, with relevant CDC
guidance.
RIDE will require each LEA to submit a Reopening Plan (hereafter referred to as a Back-to-School Plan)
for full in-person learning for all their grade spans. The plans will include each of the elements outlined
in table B1 (i), as well as how they will meet the comprehensive needs of their students and staff (ii).
RIDE’s role is to ensure that all LEAs are prepared to provide students, staff, and families with a safe
educational experience for the coming school year and to provide key resources to LEAs in support of
that process. RIDE will be updating guidance resources to support LEAs in developing key components of
their Back-to-School Plans. LEAs were required to submit Reopening Plans for the 2020-2021 school year
addressing Health and Safety, Instruction, Social Emotional and Mental Health Support, Operations, and
Communication. They are accustomed to this process and have already had a year to implement all the
elements in table B1. Moving forward, LEAs will be expected to iterate on these plans based on the most
up-to-date CDC guidance, as well as the specific needs of their students, staff, and broader school
community (ii, iv).
RIDE will support LEAs by reviewing and providing feedback on plans and opportunities for technical
assistance. The Back-to-School Plans will be a required submission component to precede the
submission of LEA applications for plans for use of ARP/ESSER III Funds. In addition to public posting,
6
ARP ESSER funds are subject to the Tydings amendment in section 421(b) of the General Education Provisions
Act, 20 U.S.C. 1225(b), and are therefore available to SEAs and LEAs for obligation through September 30, 2024.
Review and revisions of these plans, if necessary, are not required during the Tydings period.
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these applications will require that Back-to-School Plans be subject to review and possible revision every
six months during the grant period (iii).
C. Planning for the Use and Coordination of ARP ESSER Funds
The Department recognizes that seeking input from diverse stakeholders is essential to
developing plans for the use of ARP ESSER funds that are responsive to the needs of
students, families, and educators. In this section, SEAs will describe their plans for
consultation and for coordinating the use of ARP ESSER funds with other resources to meet
the needs of students.
1. SEA Consultation: Consistent with the ARP ESSER requirements, describe how
the SEA engaged in meaningful consultation with stakeholders, and incorporated
input into its plan, including, but not limited to:
i. students;
ii. families;
iii. Tribes (if applicable);
iv. civil rights organizations (including disability rights organizations);
v. school and district administrators (including special education
administrators);
vi. superintendents;
vii. charter school leaders (if applicable);
viii. teachers, principals, school leaders, other educators, school staff, and their
unions; and
ix. stakeholders representing the interests of children with disabilities,
English learners, children experiencing homelessness, children and youth
in foster care, migratory students, children who are incarcerated, and other
underserved students.
The description must include how the SEA provided the public the opportunity to
provide input in the development of the plan, a summary of the input (including
any letters of support), and how the SEA took such input into account.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, RIDE launched the Learning, Equity & Accelerated Pathways
(LEAP) Task Force, a diverse committee of 36 parents, state and local leaders, education experts, and
community members who, over two months, engaged in an evidence-based process relying on data and
the knowledge of national education experts. Commissioner Infante-Green chaired the LEAP Task Force
with co-chairs Ana Riley, Deputy Commissioner of Instructional Programs, and James Erinakes, 2021
Rhode Island Superintendent of the Year from Exeter-West Greenwich.
The LEAP Task Force engaged the following stakeholder groups:
Parents and families (ii.), including parent representation from Providence Public Schools,
Woonsocket School Department, and the organization Parents Leading for Educational Equity
(PLEE);
Civil rights organizations (iv.), including Providence NAACP and the Rhode Island Center for
Justice;
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School and district administrators (v.-vi.), including those from Providence Public Schools,
superintendents from Bristol-Warren Regional School Department and Exeter-West Greenwich
School Department; and School Committee representation from Portsmouth School District;
Charter school leaders (vii.), including administrators from Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral
Academy and Segue Institute for Learning;
Educators and building leaders (viii), including representation from RI’s Teacher of the Year from
Portsmouth School District and school leadership from Ponaganset High School in Foster-
Glocester Regional School District
Union-appointed representatives (viii) that included teachers from West Warwick Public Schools
and North Kingstown School Department representing the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers
and Health Professionals (RIFTHP) and National Education Association Rhode Island (NEARI),
respectively;
Rhode Island State Government, including the Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner and
participation from both the Rhode Island Senate and the House of Representatives; and
Institutions of Higher Education, including Brown University and the University of Rhode Island.
The LEAP Task Force also engaged a number of policy, research, and advocacy organizations, as well as
direct service partners with a vested interest in supporting the outcomes of specific student groups (ix.).
These included The Latino Policy Institute and Progreso Latino, which are both critical partners in
educating and activating the Latino community in Rhode Island, with the latter offering essential
programming for the growing community of Spanish speakers and multilingual students in the state’s
urban core. The Rhode Island Parent Information Network (RIPIN), too, is a key partner in providing
support, training, and advocacy for families and their children, especially those students with special
needs. Additional partners engaged through the LEAP Task Force include the College Crusade of Rhode
Island, City Year Providence, Generation Citizen, and Providence After School Alliance. All of these
community-based organizations play an essential role in providing direct-service programming to Rhode
Island students, and especially underserved students in the state’s urban core where Rhode Island sees
a greater population of students experiencing homelessness, migratory students, students who are in
foster care, or students who are incarcerated. Rounding out the LEAP Task Force membership were
presentation from Rhode Island KIDS Count, Annenberg Institute at Brown University, Chiefs for Change,
the Rhode Island Foundation, and the United Way of Rhode Island.
This inclusive process also included critical voices from the Rhode Island Student Advisory Council (i.),
the Rhode Island School Superintendents’ Association (RISSA) (vi.), the Rhode Island Association of
School Committees (RIASC), and the Rhode Island Educators of Color Committee; all of whom served as
sounding boards and provided feedback. All task force meetings were open to the public and recorded
for future viewing.
From knowledge about the latest research and data from national experts; to the lived experience and
needs of the community through parents, students, and CBOs; to the challenges of implementation at
the school and district level with superintendents, principals, and teachers; every voice was critical. The
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recommendations generated by the 36-member task force reinforced the importance of accelerating
learning, supporting students, and setting the strategic direction of the educational pathways work in
Rhode Island.
The LEAP Task Force’s work falls into five categories. First, the task force identified systemic enabling
conditions, or foundational conditions that must occur to support sustainable change. Then, within the
context of those enabling conditions, the task force identified five absolute priorities, or clear
commitments to change.
1. Energize our school communities—students and educators—by launching a statewide back-to-
school campaign, with particular attention to the chronically absent and the overaged-under
credited students.
2. Ensure all students have access to high-quality and personalized support from adults through
extended learning, before/after school partnerships, and summer learning opportunities.
3. Universally screen all students and align resources to need.
4. Improve and support student transitions across grades and systems.
5. Close the digital divide.
In addition, the task force identified specific recommendations related to meeting diverse needs, serving
multilingual learners and differently-abled students, and addressing social-emotional wellness.
Recommendations were also included for expanded learning programs, including summer and after-
school programs, tutoring, mentoring, and small group support.
To support role differentiation across the entire system, governance recommendations were also
provided for RIDE, its constituent LEAs, and partner organizations, like CBOs.
Finally, RIDE worked to support the LEAP Task Force by drafting a framework for acceleration in Rhode
Island, as well as producing fiscal guidance for the field related to the strategic usage of stimulus
resources from the federal government— ESSER II/CRRSAA and ESSER III/ARP— aligned to the LEAP
recommendations. These recommendations were refined with the input and feedback of the LEAP Task
Force and additional stakeholder groups over the course of the two-month LEAP engagement. They
wholly inform RIDE’s plan for coordinating the use of ARP ESSER funds. RIDE continues to engage with
key stakeholders on its plans for use of ARP ESSER funds at the SEA-level and commits to providing
technical assistance and the opportunity for ongoing consultation to support and guide LEAs in their
plans for use of funds.
2. Coordinating Funds: Describe to what extent the SEA has and will coordinate
Federal COVID-19 pandemic funding and other Federal funding. This description
must include:
i. How the SEA and its LEAs 1) are using or have used prior to the
submission of this plan and 2) plan to use following submission of
this plan, Federal COVID-19 funding under the Coronavirus Aid,
Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act and the CRRSA Act
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to support a safe return to and safely maximize in-person instruction,
sustain these operations safely, and address the disproportionate
impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on individual student groups
(including students from low-income families, children with
disabilities, English learners, racial or ethnic minorities, students
experiencing homelessness, children and youth in foster care, and
migratory studentsComplete the table below or provide a narrative
description.
Table C1.
Funding Prior/current SEA and LEA uses (including funding amounts, if applicable)
source
ESSER I For ESSER I Funds, RIDE has obligated and/or expended all but $131.00 of the
(CARES $46,350,444.00 total award. $34,827,267.00 has been expended to date with a balance of
Act) $11,523,046.00 obligated in awards to LEAs in the state.
The SEA has either spent or granted the ESSER I funds reserved via the state set-aside for
the following current priorities—
Summer learning programs
Subgrants to the LEAs hardest-hit by COVID-19
Rhode Island’s LEAs have spent approximately half of the ESSER I funds granted to them
for the following current priorities—
Personal protective equipment
Other protective measures such as partitions and plastic for in-person schooling
Building cleaning (staff and supplies)
HVAC improvements
Increased transportation costs due to in-person learning
Increased technology costs, including equipment, wifi access, and curricular resources,
dur to distance learning
Increased substitute staffing costs due to staff being out ill or due to quarantine
Planned SEA and LEA uses (including funding amounts, if applicable)
GEER I GEER I funds have been obligated for the following items—
(CARES PreK Expansion
Act) ($1M)
HigherEd - Childcare Pathways
($1.2M)
Rhode Island Promise Expansion
($3,783,000)
Mental Health Supports – Student Assistance Counselors
($884,700)
Providence Support
($1M)
Woonsocket Higher Education Center Support
($336,549)
Rhode Island College Support
($500,000)
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Table C1. Continued
Funding Planned SEA and LEA uses (including funding amounts, if applicable)
source
ESSER II For the ESSER II Funds, RIDE has allocated the 90% ($166,016,982.00) of the total award to
(CRRSA the LEAs in the state except for a reserve of $1,204,569 for new and expanding charter
Act) schools. Of the 9.5% ($17,555,199.00) state set-aside funds, the balance of set aside funds
are either in the planning phase or awaiting approval from the state’s governance board.
The SEA plans to use ESSER II funds reserved via the state set aside for the following
planned priorities—
Strengthening core instruction
Personalizing student supports
Community engagement and outreach
Kindergarten ramp up
Supporting low-performing districts
The LEAs in the state are currently completing the ESSER II application with the application
due back to the state by July 1, 2021. Rhode Island’s LEAs plan to spend ESSER II funds
granted to them for the following planned priorities—
Capital expenditures to improve indoor air quality, including window replacement and
HVAC repair or replacement
Extended learning time, including summer as well as before/after school
Technology for in-person and distance learning
High quality instructional materials and associated professional learning
Social-emotional needs of students and faculty
GEER II GEER II funds have been obligated for the following items—
(CRRSA PreK Expansion
Act) ($1M)
Higher Ed - Childcare Pathways ($1.2M)
Rhode Island Promise Expansion
($1,470,204)
Woonsocket Higher Education Center Support
($134,335)
ii. To what extent ESSER I and ESSER II funds have been awarded to LEAs
and, if funds have not yet been made available to LEAs, when they will
be. In addition, please provide any available information on the total dollar
amounts of ESSER I and ESSER II funds that have been obligated but not
expended by the SEA and its LEAs, including whether the SEA is able to
track LEA obligations.
For the ESSER I Funds, RIDE has obligated and or expended all but $131.00 of the $46,350,444.00 total
award. $34,827,267.00 has been expended to date with a balance of $11,523,046.00 obligated in
awards to the LEAs in the state. RIDE is unable to track the current amount of obligations at the LEA
level.
21
For the ESSER II Funds, RIDE has allocated the 90% ($166,016,982.00) of the total award to the LEAs in
the state except for a reserve of $1,204,569 for new and expanding charter schools. The LEAs in the
state are currently completing the ESSER II application with the application due back to the state by July
1, 2021. Of the 9.5% ($17,555,199.00) state set-aside funds, $3,000,000 has been obligated for the All-
Course Network. The balance of set aside funds are either in the planning phase or awaiting approval
from the state’s governance board.
At the time of this submission, no ESSER II dollars have been obligated or expended by LEAs. The draft
application questions for the ESSER II subgrant application were shared with LEAs to support their
planning and budgeting processes in mid-March, and the ESSER II subgrant application opened within
RIDE’s Accelegrants system in mid-May. RIDE has commenced programmatic review of LEA applications
that have been submitted, with all completed ESSER II applications due back to the state by July 1, 2021.
iii. In supporting LEAs as they plan for the safe return to and continuity of in-
person instruction and for meeting the academic, social, emotional, and
mental health needs of students resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic,
the extent to which the SEA is also using other Federal funding sources
including but not limited to under the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (“ESEA”), IDEA, Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act (“WIOA”), funding for child nutrition services, and
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, and the funds to support the
needs of students experiencing homelessness provided by section
2001(b)(1) of the ARP Act.7
RIDE will leverage the funding recently made available under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education
Act to expand the number of eligible LEAs for receipt of McKinney-Vento Homeless Education grants.
Prior to the infusion of additional funds, Rhode Island provided supplemental McKinney-Vento
Homeless grants to eight school districts with the highest number of homeless students. With the
additional funds, RIDE anticipates providing support for additional LEAs with the initial 25% of the
anticipated federal funds.
RIDE anticipates receiving eight million dollars of additional IDEA Part B funds and ~$800,000 of Early
Childhood Special Education (Sec 619) funds. RIDE intends to target the maximum amount of funds for
direct education services for students.
Finally, RIDE is working to communicate and strongly encourage all LEAs statewide to utilize this
exceptional opportunity of additional federal stimulus funding to think deeply and creatively about
blending, braiding, and strategically leveraging their Title allocations (Title I, II, III, IV-A, IDEA)
administered through RIDE’s Consolidated Resource Plan (CRP) with the opportunities presented by
ARP/ESSER III. RIDE program teams are ready and available to assist LEAs with questions and
7
Please note that the needs of students experiencing homelessness must be addressed (along with the other groups
disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic) through the use of the ARP ESSER SEA reservations and
the required LEA reservation for the academic impact of lost instructional time; the funding provided to support the
needs of students experiencing homelessness by section 2001(b)(1) of the ARP Act is in addition to the supports and
services provided with ARP ESSER funds.
22
consideration of options as they think through new or innovative approaches to supporting students in a
way that leverages this unique moment while being fiscally responsible.
D. Maximizing State-Level Funds to Support Students
The Department recognizes that States have an extraordinary opportunity to address the
disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on underserved students through the
ARP Act’s required State set-asides to address the academic impact of lost instructional time,
provide summer learning and enrichment programs, and provide comprehensive afterschool
programs. In this section, SEAs will describe their evidence-based strategies for these
resources.
1. Academic Impact of Lost Instructional Time: Describe how the SEA will use the
funds it reserves under section 2001(f)(1) of the ARP Act (totaling not less than 5
percent of the State’s total allocation of ARP ESSER funds) on evidence-based
interventions to address the academic impact of lost instructional time by
supporting the implementation of evidence-based interventions, such as summer
learning or summer enrichment, extended day, comprehensive afterschool
programs, or extended school year programs, and ensure that such interventions
respond to students’ academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs. The
description must include:
i. A description of the evidence-based interventions (e.g., providing
intensive or high-dosage tutoring, accelerating learning) the SEA has
selected, and the extent to which the SEA will evaluate the impact of those
interventions on an ongoing basis to understand if they are working;
Strengthening Core Instruction – Math and Literacy
Rhode Island is committed to accelerating learning during the summer of 2021 and subsequent school
year. Rhode Island experiences persistently low achievement in literacy and mathematics. COVID
exacerbated this low performance. Guidance provided to districts outlining stimulus spending priorities
emphasizes the need to invest in high-quality curriculum with specific implementation supports in ELA
and mathematics. This guidance additionally calls on districts to take urgent action in addressing
foundational literacy. Early literacy is a priority in Rhode Island as evidenced through state legislation
requiring educators to demonstrate proficiency or awareness, depending on role, in the science of
reading.
Using stimulus funds, RIDE will launch a math strategy that will provide Eureka specific curriculum
implementation supports in the elementary grades. Many districts in Rhode Island have adopted Eureka
math as part of RI’s high-quality curriculum initiative. Often, districts are unable to provide ongoing
implementation support that builds teacher content knowledge integrated with curriculum support.
The modules and professional learning that will be developed and delivered will support the
enhancement of teacher instruction in mathematics. At the middle level, RIDE will provide deep support
in three to five LEAs that involves several days of professional learning beginning in the summer and
continuing throughout the school year. Interim assessment data from the 2021 school year indicates
23
math performance was more negatively impacted than ELA performance, which makes it imperative the
RIDE focus its funding on a math strategy for both elementary and middle grades.
In addition to the curriculum-specific content focus in mathematics, RIDE will support the development
of modules/online classes that support the awareness of the science of reading. Approximately 7,000
educators across Rhode Island must demonstrate awareness. Another 5,000 educators must
demonstrate proficiency in the science of reading. Stimulus funding will support over 2,000 educators in
the completion of professional learning and demonstration of proficiency in the science of reading. RIDE
will be able to monitor short term impact of all these initiatives by closely monitoring implementation
and reviewing proficiency completion data. RIDE will continue to review interim assessment data for
early improvement and review state assessment results.
Tutoring
Rhode Island will also launch an effort to expand high-dosage tutoring statewide. RIDE will build out
technical assistance learning communities to support district leaders in developing tutoring programs for
their districts. This technical assistance will focus on training district staff on research-backed best
practices for high-dosage tutoring, modelled on a similar pilot program in the state launched by Brown
University’s Annenberg Institute this year. As part of this, RIDE will fund staff members to work directly
with districts to help overcome implementation hurdles. RIDE will also help districts analyze their data to
identify the student groups most in need of high-dosage tutoring to accelerate their learning. RIDE will
also serve as convener to help coordinate several related tutoring initiatives in the state, such as an
expansion of RI’s AmeriCorps organizations and a partnership with Schoolhouse.world, Khan Academy’s
tutoring-focused sister organization, to help align efforts around a common vision for serving students.
ii. How the evidence-based interventions will specifically address the
disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on certain groups of students,
including each of the student groups listed in question A.3.i.-viii. When
possible, please indicate which data sources the SEA will use to determine
the impact of lost instructional time; and
District and school data will guide decisions for the interventions outlined in this plan. These data
include: interim assessment data, prior and SY 21 achievement data, ACCESS data, attendance data and
other factors. RIDE disaggregates student data by student subgroups, which enables RIDE and districts
to ensure that the interventions undertaken in this plan are having the desired impact on the
subpopulations most impacted by COVID-19.
For 1- and 2-Star LEAs (LEAs identified as low performing through district accountability), they will be
eligible for a strategic support matching grant through a portion of RIDE’s state set-aside dollars,
currently called the LEAP District Support Program. This match was conceived to provide additional
support to our most historically under-resourced communities, as well as to incentivize LEAs to adopt
high-leverage, evidence-based interventions from a comprehensive but not exhaustive list, and then to
study the implementation and the effectiveness of those interventions using a continuous improvement
24
model and rapid-cycle evaluation work. This work will all be supported and sustained through data-
driven, district-improvement communities of practice that will be facilitated by a technical assistance
partner who will also provide coaching and on-site support. A sampling of the broad categories of such
aligned evidence-based interventions includes: high quality instructional materials, professional
learning, multilingual learner (MLL) improvement strategies, differently-abled students (DAS)
improvement strategies, social-emotional learning (SEL) or mental health supports, grade-span specific
approaches, school or district redesign, or other targeted improvement approaches.
iii. The extent to which the SEA will use funds it reserves to identify and
engage 1) students who have missed the most in-person instruction during
the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years; and 2) students who did not
consistently participate in remote instruction when offered during school
building closures.
RIDE will use a portion of its state set-aside to expand research and analysis capacity to understand the
impact of COVID-19 more fully upon students. RIDE will work with leading research institutions in the
state and region, such as the University of Rhode Island, Brown University, and Harvard University, to
unearth and identify patterns in how COVID-19 impacted students, particularly student subpopulations,
and look for replicable best practices. The goal of this research and evaluation approach will be to
empower districts, schools, and the state with data-informed, evidence-based action steps for
accelerating student learning.
2. Evidence-Based Summer Learning and Enrichment Programs: Describe how the
SEA will use the funds it reserves under section 2001(f)(2) of the ARP Act
(totaling not less than 1 percent of the State’s total allocation of ARP ESSER
funds) for evidence-based summer learning and enrichment programs, including
those that begin in Summer 2021, and ensure such programs respond to students’
academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs. The description must
include:
i. A description of the evidence-based programs that address the academic,
social, emotional, and mental health needs of students (e.g., providing
intensive or high-dosage tutoring, accelerating learning) the SEA has
selected, and the extent to which the SEA will evaluate the impact of those
programs;
RIDE will be significantly expanding summer learning options statewide through its All-Course Network
(ACN) platform. The ACN provides free courses to students across the state, with courses developed and
run by postsecondary institutions, community-based organizations, municipalities, and local education
agencies. All of these courses are posted on an easy-to-use centralized registration website, called
EnrollRI. The courses are offered in advanced placement, “readiness courses” to support the transition
into high school or college, financial literacy, career credentials, work-based learning, dual enrollment,
and enrichment. As of June 7, 2021, RIDE has made 6,154 seats available for students, across 345
different courses offered by 66 different providers. RIDE also intends to allow students to access
summer learning opportunities offered in other districts by allowing them to post their courses through
25
a new “Course Share” function on EnrollRI. Over 2,800 of these course seats are for summer learning.
These courses provide a range of important opportunities to students, from academic learning (such as
AP classes) to enrichment (such as animation classes and an “adventure camp” at a local park), and
provide opportunities for students to connect positively and address their social and emotional needs.
RIDE will also be launching a statewide initiative to expand high-dosage tutoring in districts across the
state, as described in section D.1.i above.
ii. How the evidence-based programs will specifically address the
disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on certain groups of students,
including each of the student groups listed in question A.3. i.--viii. When
possible, please indicate which data sources the SEA will use to identify
students most in need of summer learning and enrichment programs; and
The breadth of course offerings available on the ACN was designed to meet student needs, as prioritized
by the LEAP Task Force. Specifically, the LEAP Task Force maintains that Rhode Island should:
Commit to every child and every family having access to at least one high-quality extended
learning opportunity this summer; and
Ensure that every urban student, multilingual learner, and differently-abled student in Rhode
Island is enrolled and engaged in quality summer learning opportunities that, ideally, are
designed specifically to serve them and their specific needs.
RIDE will identify specific students for priority on the ACN if they fall into any one of these three priority
designations: multilingual learners (or English language learners), differently-abled students (defined as
having an IEP), or economically-disadvantaged students (defined as being eligible for free or reduced-
priced lunch). RIDE has been intentional about outreach and publicizing through many channels the
opportunity to enroll in the ACN in order to meet the expectation that all students have access to high-
quality summer learning opportunities – especially if those students are part of the above stated priority
designations or a different underserved student group, (e.g., students from low-income families,
students experiencing homelessness, children and youth in foster care, youth involved in the criminal
justice system, LGBTQ+ students, etc.)
The EnrollRI platform, RIDE’s centralized registration website, connects to RIDE’s statewide data system,
inclusive of attendance and enrollment data, as well as performance data. This allows RIDE to analyze
patterns in which students are accessing these programs and from which priority student groups, in
order to take action to address any equity concerns. Additionally, RIDE is allocating seats in
oversubscribed EnrollRI courses via a random lottery. After calculating the percentage of students in the
overall statewide student population who are in these priority groups, i.e. those who have been
disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the EnrollRI lottery will set aside a percentage
of seats for students from these groups to ensure they have access to needed programs.
Through the ACN, RIDE provides families the opportunity to select among high-quality offerings to
identify the ones that are best suited for students’ individual needs. In particular, RIDE selected a large
26
number of enrichment opportunities to ensure that students have opportunities to build their social-
emotional learning skills, connect with each other in-person, and discover passions that will help ensure
they are re-engaged this summer, and continue to stay engaged throughout the academic year.
An example of summer enrichment offerings is given in the figure below, as displayed on the EnrollRI
platform for student and family users. While only a small snapshot of the varied course offerings is
pictured, the selection demonstrates the variety of offerings, including an approach to addressing the
needs for Kindergarten ramp-up for students who did not enroll in Pre-K in 2020-2021 (Getting Ready
for Kindergarten), supplementary supports for students preparing for higher education (Getting Ready
for College and Life), and tutoring supports in mathematics. There are also several courses available that
specifically target multilingual learners who are learning English, as well as students who are seeking to
learn a language other than English. RIDE is also offering Readiness Courses, which help middle and high
school students build math and ELA skills for entering high school and college; these are evidence-based
courses that RIDE developed to respond to clear needs in Rhode Island’s student population.
iii. The extent to which the SEA will use funds it reserves to identify and
engage 1) students who have missed the most in-person instruction during
the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years; and 2) students who did not
consistently participate in remote instruction when offered during school
building closures.
RIDE collects data on attendance and mode of instruction for all students, which makes it possible for
RIDE to identify the students who have struggled with attendance in either a virtual or in-person
instructional environment. To further unpack the data, RIDE will use part of its state set-aside to expand
research and analysis capacity, and develop data-informed recommendations for accelerating student
learning after COVID-19. See section D.1.iii for more information.
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3. Evidence-Based Comprehensive Afterschool Programs: Describe how the SEA
will use the funds it reserves under section 2001(f)(3) of the ARP Act (totaling
not less than 1 percent of the State’s total allocation of ARP ESSER funds) for
evidence-based comprehensive afterschool programs (including, for example,
before-school programming), and ensure such programs respond to students’
academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs. The description must
include:
i. A description of the evidence-based programs (e.g., including partnerships
with community-based organizations) the SEA has selected, and the extent
to which the SEA will evaluate the impact of those programs;
Rhode Island has a long-standing commitment to high-quality, comprehensive afterschool programs that
address the academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs of students. Using the state’s
successful 21st Century Community Learning Center (RI 21st CCLC) grant model as a guide, RIDE will use
funds under section 2001(f)(3) of the ARP Act to support partnerships between LEA and CBOs to provide
comprehensive afterschool programming. Grantees will design their programs using the RI 21st CCLC
Theory of Action and follow the Rhode Island Afterschool Quality Standards.
Applicants will be expected to provide evidence of a strong partnership between the LEA and one or
more CBO(s), with clearly defined roles, responsibilities, and capacities for each; structures to promote
on-going, meaningful, two-way communication; and memoranda of understanding, which must address
data-sharing.
Applications must include a description of the afterschool programming that the partners propose to
provide, which must include:
Academic enrichment that reinforces and complements the school day support;
Abroad array of enrichment activities which prioritize youth voice and choice;
Social-emotional learning;
Mental health supports and/or referrals; and
Family engagement.
Applications will also describe the staffing structure and supports for staff, outreach and communication
strategies, how they will address equity, program governance and management, data and evaluation
strategies, and commitment to program quality improvement.
The evidence base for this approach comes from a recent rigorous, independent, statewide evaluation
of the RI 21st CCLC grant. The key impact analysis finding was (p. viii):
Overall, our results supported the proposition that high-quality 21st CCLC programs can
have a positive impact on mathematics and ELA assessment scores, as well as school-
day absences. Our analyses for these three types of outcomes yielded multiple
statistically significant and positive results (in terms of both all-group analysis and
analysis by grade level). There also was evidence that 21st CCLC programs in our sample
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were having a positive impact on disciplinary incidents and suspensions (i.e.,
reductions), though those results were not quite as strong as the other results noted
(i.e., we saw fewer statistically significant results when analyzed by grade level).
[emphasis added]
Programs funded under section 2001(f)(3) of the ARP Act will be evaluated using the state's existing
Rhode Island Program Quality Assessment tools, which include both program observation tools (School-
Age and Youth Program Quality Assessments from the Weikart Center for Youth Program Quality) and
an organizational self-assessment.
ii. How the evidence-based programs will specifically address the
disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on certain groups of students,
including each of the student groups listed in question A.3.i.-viii. When
possible, please indicate which data sources the SEA will use to identify
students most in need of comprehensive afterschool programming; and
The Learning, Equity & Accelerated Pathways (LEAP) Task Force called out the need for Expanded
Learning Opportunities as an equity strategy to address not only the disproportionate impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic, but also the deep systemic inequities that existed beforehand. The Task Force's
final report notes (p. 35):
All extended learning opportunities should begin with the equity principle of targeting the
students who need these opportunities the most, with specific attention to and flexibility
for:
Differently-abled students, multilingual learners, and students of color
Students who travel back to their home countries during breaks from school, or
who need to be able to work
Students whose families may not be comfortable with sending their children back
to in-person school.
Grantees will be expected to describe in their application how they will target these populations, as well
as what data they will use to identify other underserved groups of students who may be in need of
comprehensive afterschool services (e.g., students from low-income families, students experiencing
homelessness, children and youth in foster care, youth involved in the criminal justice system, and
LGBTQ+ students etc.). In addition, applicants should outline how they will ensure the effectiveness of
the afterschool services that they provide for these students. For differently-abled students and
multilingual learners, in particular, strategies should reinforce and complement school-day efforts, in
alignment with the LEAP Task Force recommendations for these students (final report, p. 33).
iii. the extent to which the SEA will use funds it reserves to identify and
engage 1) students who have missed the most in-person instruction during
the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years; and 2) students who did not
consistently participate in remote instruction when offered during school
building closures.
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As noted in the Learning, Equity & Accelerated Pathways Task Force Report (p. 22), Rhode Island public
schools experienced a 3.1 percent decrease in enrollment, or about 4,000 students, in the 2020-21
school year. Rates of decrease were even higher in the urban core communities of Central Falls (3.4%),
Pawtucket (3.8%), Providence (5.9%), and Woonsocket (4.7%) - the communities targeted by these
funds. Applicants will need to propose effective outreach strategies as well as specific youth, family, and
community engagement strategies. An explicit purpose of these strategies will be to find, engage and re-
enroll these students.
In addition, LEAs and their partner CBOs are expected to identify those students who were enrolled in
their schools during COVID-19 pandemic but who missed the most in-person instruction and/or who did
not consistently participate in remote instruction. These students should be targeted by the afterschool
program and invited and encourage to attend, although best practices indicate that they should not be
required to do so.
These afterschool programs will be a draw for students who may be disengaged, particularly if the
programs are centered around positive relationships and allow students to explore their interests and
passions. Anecdotal evidence as well as Rhode Island's own evaluation results show that high-quality
afterschool programming promotes student engagement in learning, as well as actual increased school-
day attendance.
1. Emergency Needs: If the SEA plans to reserve funds for emergency needs under
section 2001(f)(4) of the ARP Act to address issues responding to the COVID-19
pandemic, describe the anticipated use of those funds, including the extent to
which these funds will build SEA and LEA capacity to ensure students’ and
staff’s health and safety; to meet students’ academic, social, emotional, and
mental health needs; and to use ARP ESSER funds to implement evidence-based
interventions.
At this time, RIDE does not plan to request the invocation of Section 2001(f)(4) of the ARP Act in order to
reserve funds for emergency needs.
E. Supporting LEAs in Planning for and Meeting Students’ Needs
The Department recognizes that the safe return to in-person instruction must be accompanied
by a focus on meeting students’ academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs, and by
addressing the opportunity gaps that existed before – and were exacerbated by – the
pandemic. In this section, SEAs will describe how they will support their LEAs in
developing high-quality plans for LEAs’ use of ARP ESSER funds to achieve these
objectives.
1. LEA Plans for the Use of ARP ESSER Funds: Describe what the SEA will
require its LEAs to include in LEA plans consistent with the ARP ESSER
requirements for the use of ARP ESSER funds, how the SEA will require such
plans to be made available to the public, and the deadline by which the LEA must
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submit its ARP ESSER plan (which must be a reasonable timeline and should be
within no later than 90 days after receiving its ARP ESSER allocation). The LEA
plans must include, at a minimum:
i. The extent to which and how the funds will be used to implement
prevention and mitigation strategies that are, to the greatest extent
practicable, in line with the most recent CDC guidance, in order to
continuously and safely operate schools for in-person learning;
ii. How the LEA will use the funds it reserves under section 2001(e)(1) of the
ARP Act (totaling not less than 20 percent of the LEA’s total allocation of
ARP ESSER funds) to address the academic impact of lost instructional
time through the implementation of evidence-based interventions, such as
summer learning or summer enrichment, extended day, comprehensive
afterschool programs, or extended school year programs;
iii. How the LEA will spend its remaining ARP ESSER funds consistent with
section 2001(e)(2) of the ARP Act; and
iv. How the LEA will ensure that the interventions it implements, including
but not limited to the interventions under section 2001(e)(1) of the ARP
Act to address the academic impact of lost instructional time, will respond
to the academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs of all students,
and particularly those students disproportionately impacted by the
COVID-19 pandemic, including students from low-income families,
students of color, English learners, children with disabilities, students
experiencing homelessness, children and youth in foster care, and
migratory students.
Due to state requirements, RIDE was not able to make ARP ESSER III funds accessible to LEAs by May 24.
At the time of submission of this plan, LEAs were still finalizing and submitting their applications for use
of ESSER II/CRRSA funds, which will undergo a process of programmatic and fiscal review. Despite the
delay in timeline, RIDE intends to be as expeditious as possible in its administration of ARP ESSER funds
to LEAs.
As detailed in B.2., all LEAs will be required to submit a Back-to-School Plan detailing a Safe Return to In-
Person Instruction and Continuity of Services. As well, all LEAs will be required to submit a subgrant
application detailing their plan for use of ARP ESSER funds before they can begin to draw down from
their allocation. Upon the Department’s approval of Rhode Island’s ARP ESSER state plan, and pending
Rhode Island Commissioner of Education and Rhode Island Governor approval, RIDE will publish the
template for Back-to-School Plans as well as the application questions for LEAs’ plans for use of ARP
ESSER funds in order to facilitate LEA planning. RIDE projects both the template and the
application/planning questions will be made available during the second week of July 2021. Fiscal
guidance will be provided to LEAs and RIDE will resume its pod structure to provide direct point of
contact technical assistance for LEAs.
Over the course of approximately eight weeks, LEAs will work to update their Back-to-School plans
based on the most recently published health and safety guidance in the state, while simultaneously
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developing their plans for use of ARP ESSER funds. LEAs will be required to (i) address the use of funds,
as needed, to implement prevention and mitigation strategies aligned with the most up to date CDC
guidance, and (ii) demonstrate the use of at least 20% of their allocation for evidence-based
interventions to address learning loss, including, but not limited to, summer learning and enrichment,
expanded learning, high-dosage tutoring, and other interventions to enrich extended learning and/or
strengthen and accelerate core instruction.
Guidance for LEAs will detail allowable uses under section 2001(e) of the ARP Act. However, LEAs will be
advised to assess the specific needs of their students, and will be encouraged to align expenditures with
the LEAP Task Force absolute priorities as they relate to permissibility and requirements under section
2001(e) of the ARP Act (iii). Additionally, LEAs should prioritize the needs of diverse populations,
including multilingual learners, differently-abled students, or students who are experiencing
homelessness or living in foster care. LEAs will be encouraged to consider social emotional wellness for
all students, and pay close attention to needs identified around break-grades and transition points: PreK
to K, elementary to middle, middle to high, high to postsecondary (iv). LEA applications must also
demonstrate meaningful consultation with stakeholders in the development of their Back-to-School
plan.
Once RIDE receives the necessary approvals from the Rhode Island Commissioner of Education and
Rhode Island Governor to release the application questions for LEAs’ plans for use of ARP funds, RIDE
will offer LEAs no less than eight weeks of time to submit their applications. While LEAs’ Back-to-School
Plans will be due in August, prior to the start of the 2021-2022 school year, LEA applications detailing
plans for use of ARP ESSER funds may be submitted separately and subsequently, to be reviewed by
RIDE as expeditiously as possible upon receipt. RIDE understands the large administrative task of
processing both ESSER II/CRRSA and ARP ESSER awards in close succession; indeed, ARP ESSER
allocations are not yet accessible to LEAs due to state requirements and processes. As well, RIDE
recognizes the need to balance capacity with the thoughtfulness, intentionality, and strategic planning
necessary for successful implementation. Given that RIDE is bound by state requirements and is delayed
in making ARP ESSER funds accessible for LEA drawdown, RIDE anticipates that some LEAs may not be
poised to submit their ARP ESSER plan before the start of the school year and wishes to provide
flexibility of timeline to LEAs. For example, if an LEA wishes to use the beginning of school year 2021-
2022 to more robustly assess students’ needs in planning for use of ARP ESSER funds, RIDE supports that
approach. RIDE envisions that the time LEAs invest in thoroughly developing plans for use of ARP ESSER
funds will be spent conducting meaningful stakeholder consultation and engaging in ongoing technical
assistance with RIDE program staff.
Regardless of the flexibility in timeline, however, RIDE stands ready to review any LEA’s ARP ESSER plan
as soon as an LEA is ready to submit it for review, including if that LEA submits it before eight weeks’
time. Upon programmatic and fiscal approval of applications and plans, LEAs will be required to post
their final approved plans on their respective websites, which will be centrally accessible at
back2schoolri.com.
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2. LEA Consultation: Describe how the SEA will, in planning for the use of ARP
ESSER funds, ensure that, consistent with the ARP ESSER requirements, its
LEAs engage in meaningful consultation with stakeholders, including, but not
limited to:
i. students;
ii. families;
iii. school and district administrators (including special education
administrators); and
iv. teachers, principals, school leaders, other educators, school staff, and their
unions.
The LEA must also engage in meaningful consultation with each of the following
to the extent present in or served by the LEA:
i. Tribes;
ii. civil rights organizations (including disability rights organizations);
and
iii. stakeholders representing the interests of children with disabilities,
English learners, children experiencing homelessness, children and
youth in foster care, migratory students, children who are
incarcerated, and other underserved students.
The description must also include how the SEA will ensure that LEAs provide the
public the opportunity to provide input in the development of the LEA’s plan for
the use of ARP ESSER funds and take such input into account.
Communication is a critical component of each LEA’s plan for the use of ARP ESSER funds. Through the
LEAP Task Force process, RIDE modeled for all LEAs in the state an open, transparent, and participatory
process by which to engage the community and a wide cross-section of stakeholders in meaningful
consultation. Those resources are available in the public domain.
As such, all LEAs will be required to demonstrate and provide evidence of meaningful consultation with
stakeholders in the development of their Back-to-School Plan and plan for use of ARP ESSER funds.
These stakeholders include, but are not limited to: students, families, community members, school
leaders, teachers and other school-based staff, unions, school board members, central office staff, and
community partner organizations. As well, LEAs are required, as applicable, to demonstrate engagement
with stakeholders representing the interests of children with disabilities, English learners, children
experiencing homelessness, children and youth in foster care, migratory students, children who are
incarcerated, and other underserved students. Evidence of meaningful stakeholder consultation may
include but would not be limited to: a copy of a public meeting posting from a municipality or Secretary
of State with the LEA’s plan for use of ARP ESSER funds listed as a discussion item; an agenda from a
meaningful consultation meeting, or notes from such an engagement opportunity; or a letter of support
from a stakeholder group. LEAs will be required to demonstrate and highlight how they incorporated
stakeholder feedback and in put in their plans for use of ARP ESSER funds. RIDE will also include
language in grant assurances requiring LEA affirmation of having conducted meaningful stakeholder
consultation and providing the public the opportunity to provide input in the development of the LEA’s
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plan. Thus, RIDE will not approve plans that do not show evidence of stakeholder engagement or key
takeaways from community feedback.
In addition to demonstrating stakeholder engagement in plan development, LEAs will be expected to
identify a process and mode to receive feedback and concerns on Back-to-School plans and LEA plans for
use of ARP ESSER funds from the aforementioned stakeholders. so that review and any subsequent
revisions may occur every six months during the grant period, as required by the ARP Act.
3. Describe how the SEA will support and monitor its LEAs in using ARP ESSER
funds. The description must include:
i. How the SEA will support and monitor its LEAs’ implementation of
evidence-based interventions that respond to students’ academic, social,
emotional, and mental health needs, such as through summer learning or
summer enrichment, extended day, comprehensive afterschool programs,
or extended school year programs – including the extent to which the SEA
will collect evidence of the effectiveness of interventions employed;
RIDE as the SEA has set clear performance metrics as part of the LEAP Task Force Report, and in
coordination and aligned with the RIDE 2021-2025 Strategic Plan. All LEA applications for ARP/ESSER III
funds will be aligned to both of these priority documents, while also being rooted in local need and data.
This alignment will help to ensure that the SEA is able to collect information about effectiveness while
supporting and monitoring.
ii. How the SEA will support and monitor its LEAs in specifically addressing
the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on certain groups
of students, including each of the student groups listed in question A.3.i.-
viii; and
Specific attention to each of the student groups listed in question A.3.i.-viii. will be included in RIDE’s
ESSER III application, in order to focus LEA attention on the specific and disproportionate impact of
COVID-19 upon those student groups. Further, in RIDE’s communication and technical assistance to
LEAs, those student groups will be centered and intentionally designed-for, rather than treated as an
addition or an afterthought.
iii. How the SEA will support and monitor its LEAs in using ARP ESSER
funds to identify, reengage, and support students most likely to have
experienced the impact of lost instructional time on student learning, such
as:
1. Students who have missed the most in-person instruction during
the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years;
2. Students who did not consistently participate in remote instruction
when offered during school building closures; and
3. Students most at-risk of dropping out of school.
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RIDE will support LEAs by helping them to identify, and thereafter, monitor how they are effectively
reengaging and support students who have missed the most in-person instruction, who did not
consistently participate, or who are at-risk of dropping out of school. These three priority areas align
closely with the priorities articulated in the LEAP Task Force report. Additionally, RIDE will work to
support LEAs with a “return to school” campaign that focuses specifically on the identified student
groups, outlined above.
4. Describe the extent to which the SEA will support its LEAs in implementing
additional strategies for taking educational equity into account in expending ARP
ESSER funds, including but not limited to:
i. Allocating funding both to schools and for districtwide activities based on
student need, and
ii. Implementing an equitable and inclusive return to in-person instruction.
An inclusive return to in-person instruction includes, but is not limited to,
establishing policies and practices that avoid the over-use of exclusionary
discipline measures (including in- and out-of-school suspensions) and
creating a positive and supportive learning environment for all students.
As articulated in the LEAP Task Force Report, equity sits at the heart of all the work that RIDE endeavors
to undertake. As such, RIDE as the SEA expects all its constituent LEAs— and will structure its subgrant
application for ARP/ESSER III dollars in such a manner that-- will ensure that equity is the guiding lens
through which they analyze their local data and identify the most pressing needs. This will be in accord
with the equity lens RIDE asked LEAs to take for ESSER I and ESSER II, as well. To demonstrate the state
agency’s commitment to an equity-centered approach, RIDE has elected to allocate a large portion of its
state set-aside dollars to support our lowest-performing schools and districts. These funds will be
provided in the form of a matching grant in addition to their local LEA allocation, and will be planned for
and expended based on local data, a compelling evidence base, and clear demonstration of need.
In general, RIDE maintains that schools should establish “and promote a positive climate with emphasis
on mutual respect, self-control, good attendance, order and organization, and proper security” as
required in the Rhode Island Basic Education Plan (RI BEP). The RI BEP goes on to say that “each LEA
shall… define a set of discipline strategies… that ensure that students and adults make positive
behavioral choices and that are conducive to a safe and nurturing environment that promotes academic
success.” (G14-2.1.4)
Appropriate and effective discipline is designed to provide instruction to students intended to reduce
the problem behavior. Schools must consider discipline as part of educational process and ensure their
practices:
Allow students to accept responsibility for their actions
Place importance on the value of academic participation and achievement
Build positive self-image
Teach students alternative methods of dealing with problems (Beverly H. Johns & Valerie G.
Carr, 2012)
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School disciplinary measures should not be used to exclude students from school or otherwise deprive
them of an education. Out of school suspension should be used as a last resort in schools in order to
preserve the safety of students and staff.
Existing policies from SY2020-2021:
RIDE encouraged LEAs to have clearly defined protocols in alignment with CDC and state
guidance. For example, in-school mask mandates have been the norm for all of SY2020-2021. In
a case of student refusal to adhere to protocols for face coverings, LEAs were urged to establish
policies that recognize a student’s individual medical circumstance, and that do not ostracize,
punish, add to trauma, or remove a student from access to learning.
Accountability was waived for SY2020-2021, i.e. chronic absenteeism and suspension data will
be publicly available, but not used for accountability purposes.
F. Supporting the Educator Workforce
The Department recognizes the toll that the COVID-19 pandemic has taken on the Nation’s
educators as well as students. In this section, SEAs will describe strategies for supporting and
stabilizing the educator workforce and for making staffing decisions that will support
students’ academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs.
1. Supporting and Stabilizing the Educator Workforce:
i. Describe the extent to which the State is facing shortages of
educators, education administration personnel, and other school
personnel involved in safely reopening schools, and the extent to
which they vary by region/type of school district and/or groups of
educators (e.g., special educators and related services personnel and
paraprofessionals; bilingual or English as a second language
educators; science, technology, engineering, and math (“STEM”)
educators; career and technical education (“CTE”) educators; early
childhood educators). Cite specific data on shortages and needs
where available.
Rhode Island does not collect vacancy data from districts. As a proxy to help RIDE understand shortage
area trends, the agency reviews the issuance of emergency certificates and other preliminary
certificates. In recent years, shortages have steadily increased across several certificate areas. For the
2020-2021 school year, RIDE has issued more emergency certificates than in any other year.
In addition to this data, Rhode Island’s small size allows RIDE to meet regularly with all district leaders.
Leaders report continued shortages across several areas (See Table F1). The data below do not provide
a full picture of shortages since it only shows information at the point where a district seeks support
from RIDE. RIDE knows that in these same certification areas, districts may have applicant pools of only
one or two individuals so the shortage picture is graver than it might seem. For context, Rhode Island
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has approximately 14,000 working educators. As outlined in the LEAP report, districts will plan and
allocate resources to ensure staffing meets the needs of students.
Complete the table below, changing or adding additional rows as needed, or provide a narrative
description.
Table F1.
Area Data on shortages and Narrative description
needs
Special educators 89 shortages based on Districts face shortages across all grade levels but
and related service certificate data particularly at the secondary level. Almost all students
personnel and have been adversely impacted by the pandemic, but
paraprofessionals differently-abled students suffered more and will need
more supports to accelerate their learning and benefit
from additional services.
Bilingual educators 18 There are not enough educators who speak a language
other than English and are trained as bilingual educators
across all grade levels. As we work to increase programs,
we face barriers to staffing the programs.
English as a second 202 Despite state efforts to incentivize teachers to seek this
language educators certification, Rhode Island still faces shortages.
STEM educators 75 Shortages in STEM areas tend to be higher in certain
sciences such as chemistry and physics. In secondary
mathematics, districts report few applicants for open
positions and difficulty finding strong teachers.
CTE educators 10
Early childhood 34 As we work toward universal high-quality Pre-K we will
educators need more certified early childhood educators and will
look to expand prep program offerings.
School counselors n/a Districts report smaller applicant pools than in the past.
Currently, there is only 1 preparation provider in Rhode
Island for school counselors.
Social workers n/a Same as school counselors.
Nurses n/a Rhode Island recently opened a second pathway for
school nurses and this has started to help the shortage
situation.
School psychologists n/a
ii. Describe how the SEA will assist its LEAs in identifying the most
urgent areas of shortages or potential shortages, with particular plans
for individual LEAs facing the most significant needs (e.g., by
avoiding layoffs, providing high-quality professional learning
opportunities, and addressing the impact of stress or trauma on
educators). Include a description of how other Federal COVID-19
funding (e.g., ESSER and GEER funds under the CARES Act and
37
CRRSA Act) have already been used to avoid layoffs during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
LEAs will review and plan for vacancies. Some local contracts include retirement notification dates, while
others do not. LEAs will review retirements, resignations, and any possible layoff situations to prioritize
recruitment areas. ESSER funds may be used by RIDE to offer incentives to strengthen Rhode Island’s
educator pipeline and mitigate barriers to certification, such as mentoring for new teachers or targeted
supports during pre-service training.
Rhode Island schools have been open since Fall 2020, so teachers have been teaching all year without
interruption to pay. Districts did not experience layoffs. RI’s guidance to LEAs outlines the need for
professional learning and teacher supports. During this school year, RIDE implemented a statewide
calendar that provided common professional development days. This practice will continue in 2021-22,
allowing districts and the state to plan shared professional development opportunities. Based on
recommendations from the LEAP Task Force, RIDE is committed to prioritizing professional development
and continued growth by also supporting the social-emotional needs of educators and school staff – in
addition to students. Educators have been able to participate in stress relief professional learning to
support their well-being, and these opportunities will continue in 2021-22.
iii. Describe the actions the SEA will take to fill anticipated gaps in
certified teachers for the start of the 2021-2022 school year and to
what extent the SEA will further support its LEAs in expanding the
educator pipeline and educator diversity while addressing the
immediate needs of students disproportionately impacted by the
pandemic (e.g., recruiting teaching candidates to provide high-
dosage tutoring or implementing residencies for teacher candidates).
RIDE's strategic plan work has identified the need to set and monitor progress between July 2021 and
July 2025 of a recruitment and retention model for educators of color. To support this work, RIDE has
identified two strategies that will be funded through a portion of ARP ESSER resources.
RIDE anticipates approximately 500 new educators in a given year from educator preparation programs
or alternative certification pathways. A portion of ARP ESSER funds will be dedicated to Praxis content
supports. The state’s Educators of Color Committee identified the Praxis, and knowledge of existing
Praxis support, as one barrier educators of color face at the end of pre-service training. RIDE plans to
work in partnership with an ideal provider to support all Rhode Island teacher preparation candidates
who are recent graduates and plan to enter a K12 school in the state, with special attention given to
educators of color.
RIDE also plans to use a portion of ARP ESSER funds for mentoring supports for educators of color. This
would involve a collaboration between RIDE and a partner organization, and would build a cohort of
educators – including many from RIDE’s Educators of Color Committee - to provide mentoring to new
educators of color across the state via a virtual coaching platform. Mentoring is an oft-identified way of
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recruiting and retaining educators of color by providing them with culturally responsive, non-evaluative
and informal support. This strategy for use of resources would expanding the supports given to
approximately 150 incoming Rhode Island educators of color, while simultaneously providing leadership
experience to existing statewide educators of color, empowering them to build long-lasting careers in
the state.
2. Staffing to Support Student Needs: Describe the extent to which the SEA has
developed or will develop strategies and will support its LEAs in increasing
student access to key support staff within school buildings, including school
counselors, special education personnel, nurses, social workers, and psychologists
(e.g. hiring additional personnel or freeing up these staff to focus on providing
services to students).
RIDE’s LEAP Task Force recommendations for LEAs include planning and allocating resources with a clear
and focused priority for supports and staffing related to every Rhode Island student, but especially those
in the urban core, multilingual learners, and differently-abled students. Recommendations also include a
strong focus on relationships for positive site climate, with the support of additional mental health or
behavioral staff. To that end, RIDE has encouraged LEAs to allocate ESSER II dollars towards creative or
collaborative approaches to human capital and staffing, particularly focused on expanding capacity to
support identified student needs and social-emotional wellness, including, but not limited to, the
following approaches:
Additional social workers or guidance counselors to support mental health and wellness
Partnerships with community mental health providers
Supporting classroom implementation with instructional coaches in math and reading
Hiring parents as ambassadors, navigators, translators, and other sources of support
Repurposing roles to blend or braid responsibilities across job descriptions (e.g., creating half-
time classroom teachers and half-time instructional coaches or interventionists)
Thinking about strategically teaming teachers together, classroom sharing, or co-teaching
approaches to support student needs
G. Monitoring and Measuring Progress
The Department recognizes that transparency on how ARP ESSER funds are used and their
impact on the Nation’s education system is a fundamental responsibility of Federal, State,
and local government. In this section, SEAs will describe how they are building capacity at
the SEA and LEA levels to ensure high-quality data collection and reporting and to safeguard
funds for their intended purposes.
1. Capacity for Data Collection and Reporting: It is important for an SEA to
continuously monitor progress and make adjustments to its strategies, as well as
to support its LEAs in making adjustments to LEA strategies, based on impact.
Describe how the SEA will ensure its capacity and the capacity of its LEAs to
collect data on reporting requirements, including but not limited to the examples
of reporting requirements described in the SEA’s Grant Award Notification (listed
39
in Appendix B). Describe the SEA’s capacity and strategy to collect data from its
LEAs (disaggregated by student group, where applicable), to the greatest extent
practicable, including any steps the SEA will take to build its capacity in the
future (which may include the use of ARP ESSER and other Federal COVID-19
pandemic funds at the SEA and LEA levels), on issues that may include the
following:
i. Student learning, including the academic impact of lost instructional time
during the COVID-19 pandemic;
ii. Opportunity to learn measures (e.g., chronic absenteeism; student
engagement; use of exclusionary discipline; access to and participation in
advanced coursework; access to technology, including educator access to
professional development on the effective use of technology; access to
high-quality educators; access to school counselors, social workers,
nurses, and school psychologists; and results from student, parent, and/or
educator surveys);
iii. Fiscal data that is comparable across the State (e.g., per-pupil expenditures
at the LEA and school levels);
iv. Jobs created and retained (by position type);
v. Participation in programs funded by ARP ESSER resources (e.g., summer
and afterschool programs); and
Learning gaps and summer learning loss are not new challenges, but given the unprecedented
challenges of students moving between in-person, hybrid, and distance learning during the past year
because of COVID-19, the extent of the gaps and learning losses are still largely unknown. Interim
assessment data from the fall and winter began to show differences at various grade levels where
students did not perform as well as a national sample or as well as a prior year’s grade cohort. While
RIDE cannot yet ascertain the final outcomes for this academic year, the state is fully implementing
summative state assessments. This summative state assessment data will provide additional insight into
learning during 2020-2021.
As RIDE plans for SY2021-2022, the state will again utilize interim assessments statewide to identify gaps
in learning and track student progress. As the name suggests, interim assessments fall between
formative and summative assessments. They are typically administered every 6 to 8 weeks at the school
level. Their purposes include predicting a student’s ability to succeed on RICAS, and diagnosing gaps in
students’ learning. RIDE plans to use a portion of ARP ESSER funds to offset LEA costs of interim
assessments for two additional years, giving RIDE access to critical longitudinal data to measure the
impact of lost instructional time due to COVID-19. RIDE knows what works to help students succeed –
high expectations and rigorous grade-level instruction; therefore, our assessments need to provide the
data needed to inform that instruction at the classroom and school level.
In addition to student achievement and growth measures, RIDE regularly collects data on attendance,
suspensions, participation in advanced coursework and career and technical education, and dual and
concurrent enrollment. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, RIDE also began collecting survey data
on access to technology at home and in school, as well as household access to high-speed internet. RIDE
40
annually collects survey data via SurveyWorks, the state’s culture and climate survey, which provides
opportunity for student, family, and educator feedback on student engagement, educator learning, and
family perceptions of school climate, among other themes.
RIDE plans to use ARP ESSER funds to expand capacity for data collection and analysis as it relates to
initiatives implemented in response to COVID-19. The state will engage contracted support for data
analysis, sharing, and research related to COVID recovery and implementation of projects funded by
ESSER. RIDE will also build capacity through strategic partnerships for assessment-specific data analysis
and supports. Given the increased opportunities for participation in summer programming, RIDE will
additionally acquire term-limited staffing to oversee backend enrollment operations on the state’s
EnrollRI system. RIDE also employs DataCenter dashboards that enhance SEA ability and capacity to
consistently support the field. With resources from ARP ESSER, RIDE can double-down on its
commitment to providing technical assistance and training for LEAs to better report data to the SEA, and
better access and use the data available to them. Ultimately, these strategic uses of funds will enhance
RIDE implementation and coordination capacity, and ensure data-driven decision-making.
2. Monitoring and Internal Controls: Describe how the SEA will implement
appropriate fiscal monitoring of and internal controls for the ARP ESSER funds
(e.g., by updating the SEA’s plan for monitoring funds and internal controls under
the CARES and CRRSA Acts; addressing potential sources of waste, fraud, and
abuse; conducting random audits; or other tools). In this response, please describe
the SEA’s current capacity to monitor ARP ESSER; steps, if needed, to increase
capacity; and any foreseeable gaps in capacity, including how the SEA will
provide its LEAs with technical assistance in the anticipated areas of greatest
need.
RIDE has a federally approved monitoring plan for sub-recipients of federal grant dollars; at this time,
RIDE intends to fold this scope of work into that plan, which includes an annual risk assessment of all
LEAs, a survey, desk audits, and on-site monitoring visits. At the time of submission, RIDE does not have
the additional capacity to expand monitoring beyond this approach. However, the agency-- in
coordination with the Governor’s office-- is working to secure additional contracted and term-limited
resources to support this work. In the meantime, RIDE will continue with traditional reviews and risk
assessments for each LEA every year, in addition to ten on-site audits annually, given staff capacity. For
this year and subsequent years, the risk assessment will focus on the ED-articulated priorities within and
for CRRSA and ARP, in order to ensure that the funds are spent in accordance with the LEA plans, and all
purchasing processes or hiring policies are followed. When more staff are identified, RIDE will
immediately expand monitoring and internal controls.
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Appendix A: School Operating Status and Instructional Mode Data Template
Indicate the date or time period represented by the following data.
Data is as of 5/20/2021. Table 2 includes enrollment types: outplace (O), regular (O), and alternate
learning programs (A). There were 1,466 students where method of instruction was not reported; these
are included in an additional column on the far right.
Table 1a.
In the most recent time period available, how many schools in your State offered each mode of
instruction or learning model described below? Each row should account for all schools in your
State, so that, for each row, the sum of the numbers in the “offered to all students,” “offered to
some students,” and “not offered” columns is equal to the number in the “all schools” column.
*For the 2020-21 school year, all schools were required to offer a remote learning option as a choice for
any parent/student that wanted it. Thus, even if a school was open fully for in-person learning, remote
learning was offered to all students as an option. The data below includes the number of schools that
were open for each of the learning models described below.
Number of schools All schools Offered to all Offered to Not offered
students some students
Remote or online only* 307 283 N/A 0
School buildings open with 28 28 N/A 0
both remote/online and in-
person instruction (hybrid)
School buildings open with 279 279 N/A 0
full-time in-person
instruction
To the extent data are available, please complete the above table for 1) all schools in the State,
and 2) separately for each instructional level (e.g., pre-kindergarten/elementary schools, middle
schools, high schools).
Table 1b.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL All schools Offered to all Offered to Not offered
students some students
Remote or online only* 187 187 N/A 0
School buildings open with 6 6 N/A 0
both remote/online and in-
person instruction (hybrid)
School buildings open with 181 181 N/A 0
full-time in-person
instruction
42
Table 1c.
MIDDLE SCHOOL All schools Offered to all Offered to Not offered
students some students
Remote or online only* 54 54 N/A 0
School buildings open with 2 2 N/A 0
both remote/online and in-
person instruction (hybrid)
School buildings open with 52 52 N/A 0
full-time in-person
instruction
Table 1d.
HIGH SCHOOL All schools Offered to all Offered to Not offered
students some students
Remote or online only* 54 54 N/A 0
School buildings open with 16 16 N/A 0
both remote/online and in-
person instruction (hybrid)
School buildings open with 38 38 N/A 0
full-time in-person
instruction
Table 1e.
STATE-RUN SCHOOLS All schools Offered to all Offered to Not offered
students some students
Remote or online only* 3 3 N/A 0
School buildings open with 1 1 N/A 0
both remote/online and in-
person instruction (hybrid)
School buildings open with 2 2 N/A 0
full-time in-person
instruction
43
Table 1f.
SCHOOLS WITH MULTIPLE All schools Offered to all Offered to Not offered
GRADE SPAN students some students
Remote or online only* 9 9 N/A 0
School buildings open with 3 3 N/A 0
both remote/online and in-
person instruction (hybrid)
School buildings open with 6 6 N/A 0
full-time in-person
instruction
Table 2
In the most recent time period available, what was the enrollment and mode of instruction for the
schools in your State?
Both
Remote remote/online Full-time in- Method of
Total
Number of students or online and in-person person instruction
enrollment
only instruction instruction not reported
(hybrid)
Students from low-
61,172 17,817 16,000 26,819 536
income families
White, not Hispanic 74,810 16,309 11,899 45,885 717
Black or African
12,482 3,771 3,358 5,193 160
American, not Hispanic
Hispanic, of any race 39,314 11,238 11,731 15,900 445
Asian, not Hispanic 4,510 1,915 956 1,604 35
American Indian or
Alaskan Native, not 1,158 299 350 497 12
Hispanic
Native Hawaiian or
Pacific Islander, not 203 73 41 87 2
Hispanic
Two or more races, not
6,824 1,963 1,247 3,519 106
Hispanic
English learners 15,621 3,717 4,178 7,623 103
Children with disabilities 23487 5,064 4,131 13,180 1,112
Students experiencing
847 178 153 505 11
homelessness
Children and youth in
foster care
(Data not available)
Migratory students
(Data not available)
44
Appendix B: Reporting Language Included in the Grant Award Notification (“GAN”)
As described in the Grant Award Notification (“GAN”), the SEA will comply with, and ensure
that its LEAs comply with, all reporting requirements at such time and in such manner and
containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably require, including on matters such
as:
How the State is developing strategies and implementing public health protocols
including, to the greatest extent practicable, policies and plans in line with the CDC
guidance related to mitigating COVID-19 in schools;
Overall plans and policies related to State support for return to in-person instruction and
maximizing in-person instruction time, including how funds will support a return to and
maximize in-person instruction time, and advance equity and inclusivity in participation
in in-person instruction;
Data on each school’s mode of instruction (fully in-person, hybrid, and fully remote) and
conditions;
SEA and LEA uses of funds to meet students’ social, emotional, and academic needs,
including through summer enrichment programming and other evidence-based
interventions, and how they advance equity for underserved students;
SEA and LEA uses of funds to sustain and support access to early childhood education
programs;
Impacts and outcomes (disaggregated by student subgroup) through use of ARP ESSER
funding (e.g., quantitative and qualitative results of ARP ESSER funding, including on
personnel, student learning, and budgeting at the school and district level);
Student data (disaggregated by student subgroup) related to how the COVID-19
pandemic has affected instruction and learning;
Requirements under the Federal Financial Accountability Transparency Act (“FFATA”);
and
Additional reporting requirements as may be necessary to ensure accountability and
transparency of ARP ESSER funds.
45
Appendix C: Assurances
By signing this document, the SEA assures all of the following:
The SEA will conduct all its operations so that no person shall be excluded from
participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under the ARP
ESSER program or activity based on race, color, national origin, which includes a
person’s limited English proficiency or English learner status and a person’s actual or
perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics; sex; age; or disability. These non-
discrimination obligations arise under Federal civil rights laws, including but not limited
to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of
1972, section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Age Discrimination Act of
1975. In addition, the SEA must comply with all regulations, guidelines, and standards
issued by the Department under any of these statutes;
The SEA will comply with all ARP Act and other ARP ESSER requirements and all
requirements of its Grant Award Notification, including but not limited to:
o Complying with the maintenance of effort provision in section 2004(a)(1) of the
ARP Act, absent a waiver by the Secretary pursuant to section 2004(a)(2) of the
ARP Act; and
o Complying with the maintenance of equity provisions in section 2004(b) of the
ARP Act, and ensuring its LEAs comply with the maintenance of equity provision
in section 2004(c) of the ARP Act (please note that the Department will provide
additional guidance on maintenance of equity shortly);
The SEA will allocate ARP ESSER funds to LEAs in an expedited and timely manner
and, to the extent practicable, not later than 60 days after the SEA receives ARP ESSER
funds (i.e., 60 days from the date the SEA receives each portion of its ARP ESSER
funds). An SEA that is not able to allocate such funds within 60 days because it is not
practicable (e.g., because of pre-existing State board approval requirements) will provide
an explanation to the Department within 30 days of receiving each portion of its ARP
ESSER funds (submitted via email to your Program Officer at [State].OESE@ed.gov
(e.g., Alabama.OESE@ed.gov)), including a description of specific actions the SEA is
taking to provide ARP ESSER funds to LEAs in an expedited and timely manner and the
SEA’s expected timeline for doing so;
The SEA will implement evidence-based interventions as required under section 2001(f)
of the ARP Act and ensure its LEAs implement evidence-based interventions, as required
by section 2001(e)(1) of the ARP Act;
The SEA will address the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on
underserved students (i.e., students from low-income families, students from racial or
ethnic groups (e.g., identifying disparities and focusing on underserved student groups by
race or ethnicity), gender (e.g., identifying disparities and focusing on underserved
student groups by gender), English learners, children with disabilities, students
experiencing homelessness, children and youth in foster care, and migratory students), as
required under section 2001(f) of the ARP Act, and ensure its LEAs address the
disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on underserved students (i.e.,
students from low-income families, students from racial or ethnic groups, gender, English
learners, children with disabilities, students experiencing homelessness, children and
46
youth in foster care, and migratory students), as required by section 2001(e)(1) of the
ARP Act; and
The SEA will provide to the Department: (1) the URL(s) where the public can readily
find data on school operating status and (2) the URL(s) for the SEA and/or LEA websites
where the public can find the LEA plans for a) the safe return to in-person instruction and
continuity of services required under section 2001(i) of the ARP Act, and b) use of ARP
ESSER funds. SEAs should consider ensuring a standardized URL format in all cases
(e.g., xxx.gov/COVIDplan).
47
Appendix D
OMB Control No. 1894-0005 (Exp. 06/30/2023)
NOTICE TO ALL APPLICANTS
The purpose of this enclosure is to inform you about a new provision in the Department of
Educations General Education Provisions Act ("GEPA") that applies to applicants for new grant
awards under Department programs. This provision is Section 427 of GEPA, enacted as part of
the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994 (Public Law (P.L.) 103-382).
To Whom Does This Provision Apply?
Section 427 of GEPA affects applicants for new grant awards under this program. ALL
APPLICANTS FOR NEW AWARDS MUST INCLUDE INFORMATION IN THEIR
APPLICATIONS TO ADDRESS THIS NEW PROVISION IN ORDER TO RECEIVE
FUNDING UNDER THIS PROGRAM.
(If this program is a State-formula grant program, a State needs to provide this description only
for projects or activities that it carries out with funds reserved for State-level uses. In addition,
local school districts or other eligible applicants that apply to the State for funding need to provide
this description in their applications to the State for funding. The State would be responsible for
ensuring that the school district or other local entity has submitted a sufficient section 427
statement as described below.)
What Does This Provision Require?
Section 427 requires each applicant for funds (other than an individual person) to include in its
application a description of the steps the applicant proposes to take to ensure equitable access to,
and participation in, its Federally-assisted program for students, teachers, and other program
beneficiaries with special needs. This provision allows applicants discretion in developing the
required description. The statute highlights six types of barriers that can impede equitable access
or participation: gender, race, national origin, color, disability, or age. Based on local
circumstances, you should determine whether these or other barriers may prevent your students,
teachers, etc. from such access to, or participation in, the Federally-funded project or activity. The
description in your application of steps to be taken to overcome these barriers need not be lengthy;
you may provide a clear and succinct description of how you plan to address those barriers that
are applicable to your circumstances. In addition, the information may be provided in a single
narrative, or, if appropriate, may be discussed in connection with related topics in the application.
Section 427 is not intended to duplicate the requirements of civil rights statutes, but rather to ensure
that, in designing their projects, applicants for Federal funds address equity concerns that may
affect the ability of certain potential beneficiaries to fully participate in the project and to achieve
high standards. Consistent with program requirements and its approved application, an applicant
may use the Federal funds awarded to it to eliminate barriers it identifies.
48
What are Examples of How an Applicant Might Satisfy the Requirement of This
Provision?
The following examples may help illustrate how an applicant may comply with Section 427.
(1) An applicant that proposes to carry out an adult literacy project serving, among others,
adults with limited English proficiency, might describe in its application how it intends to
distribute a brochure about the proposed project to such potential participants in their native
language.
(2) An applicant that proposes to develop instructional materials for classroom use might
describe how it will make the materials available on audio tape or in braille for students who
are blind.
(3) An applicant that proposes to carry out a model science program for secondary students
and is concerned that girls may be less likely than boys to enroll in the course, might indicate
how it intends to conduct "outreach" efforts to girls, to encourage their enrollment.
(4) An applicant that proposes a project to increase school safety might describe the special
efforts it will take to address concerns of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students, and
efforts to reach out to and involve the families of LGBT students.
We recognize that many applicants may already be implementing effective steps to ensure equity
of access and participation in their grant programs, and we appreciate your cooperation in
responding to the requirements of this provision.
RIDE details in this plan some of the proposed activities to be funded via ARP ESSER. To comply with the
requirements of Section 427 of GEPA, RIDE will undertake the following steps:
1. In Rhode Island, students who are multilingual learners are an especially prioritized student group;
and students who are Hispanic have experienced the most chronic absenteeism in the past school
year. RIDE is proposing a Back to School Campaign that will launch a targeted whole-of-state
campaign and communications toolkit in multiple languages. The toolkit will be used at the state
level and be available for LEA and school-level use to reengage our school communities about
returning to school safely.
2. RIDE is proposing robust professional learning supports for educators in both math and ELA in
order to strengthen core instruction and better serve students. Much of this professional learning
will be provided via modules/online classrooms. RIDE can ensure these professional learning
materials are available to teachers regardless of ability. For example, learning modules can be
developed with audio voiceover for those who are blind; with transcriptions of audio for those
who are deaf or hard-of-hearing; and with accessible visual design for those who are visually-
impaired.
3. For high dosage tutoring, RIDE anticipates that some of the target student groups will be
multilingual learners and differently-abled students. Therefore RIDE will support the adequate
training of adults to work with these student groups, as well as encourage the hiring of adults who
49
have varied backgrounds to support all students regardless of their status as a multilingual learner
or student with an IEP.
4. The All-Course Network expansion offered for summer learning opportunities and beyond
required extensive outreach to families and students to pre-register and register on the EnrollRI
platform. Several informational webinar opportunities were offered for families, with
interpretation services provided as needed. In addition, the EnrollRI platform for registration has
an automatic translator function for families and students whose home language is a language
other than English.
5. To support a diversified educator workforce, RIDE is proposing targeted supports for educators of
color, including praxis content supports in partnership with an educator preparation program, as
well as mentoring supports for new and existing teachers of color.
6. RIDE is also proposing the development of implicit bias training modules for new and existing
teachers. Similar to professional learning modules for math and ELA, RIDE can ensure that these
training materials are available to teachers regardless of ability, e.g. modules can be developed
with audio voiceover for those who are blind; with transcriptions of audio for those who are deaf
or hard-of-hearing; and with accessible visual design for those who are visually-impaired.
50
Estimated Burden Statement for GEPA Requirements
According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a
collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. Public
reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 3 hours per
response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources,
gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of
information. The obligation to respond to this collection is required to obtain or retain
benefit (Public Law 103-382). Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other
aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the
U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20210-4537 or
email ICDocketMgr@ed.gov and reference the OMB Control Number 1894-0005.
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