School Counselor Corps Grant Program Charles E. Dukes Colorado Department of Education

What this presentation covers Roles CDE/Program Manager Local Program Managers Fiscal Managers Program Overview History Purpose Structure and Emphasis Budget/Fiscal Management Evaluation and Reporting

Role of CDE/Program Manager One: Exercise the “Spirit of the Law” Partner in Mission Broker resources Keep our eyes on the prize for results/outcomes as legislatively intended Ask – “What is the intent of the law? What are we hoping to achieve?

Role of CDE Manager, cont. Two: Adhere to the Letter of the Law –Ensure use of funds are allowed by law –Fiscal accountability –Good paper trails –Avoid audit findings –Maintain the credibility of the program –Protect the dollars so they keep coming

Role of Fiscal Manager Shared Responsibility with Program Manager Monitoring expenditures to ensure utilization of funds are on track Forecasting any cost-savings whereas funds could be devoted to other budget categories or new uses Consult CDE program manager regarding budget revisions –Submit budget revisions for approval when necessary –Not needed - if less than 10% of award for purchased services and supplies –Needed - salaries and equipment; More than 10% Ensuring required financial reports are completed and submitted to CDE by deadline

How CDE will help you: Annual Fall Networking Meeting –Save the Date (Tentative): Friday, Oct. 21, 2011 Site Visits –Learn about you and your program and needs –Coach and encourage –Refer to known resources –Primary purpose: General Technical Assistance –Secondary purpose: Monitoring of compliance

Background House Bill established the School Counselor Corps Grant Program. The resulting legislation enacted by the General Assembly is et seq, of the Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.). Since 2008, the General Assembly has annually allocated approximately $5 million to fund this grant program. –$15 million has been invested to fund 37 grantees which represented 75.5 secondary counselors. –These counselors provided services to over 82,000 students of which over 38,000 (46 percent) are economically disadvantaged.

Purpose of the Program To increase the availability of effective school-based counseling within secondary schools with a focus on postsecondary preparation; To increase the graduation rate within the state; and Increase the percentage of students who appropriately prepare for, apply to and continue into postsecondary education.

Impact Summary In the first cohort of the three-year grant ( ), 90 schools in 37 districts and/or Charter School Institute schools were awarded School Counselor Corps funds. Schools served by the grant demonstrated the following outcomes: –Decrease in Dropout Rate –Increase in College Preparation Data –Relationship to Other High School Initiatives

Decrease in Dropout Rate The most recent available data shows that in comparison with non-funded School Counselor Corps schools, the schools receiving School Counselor Corps grant funds: decreased (improved) their cumulative dropout rate from 5.2 percent to 4.6 percent from to while non- funded schools with similar dropout rates and free and reduced lunch rates increased their dropout rate from 10.6 percent to 10.9 percent points over this same period; and maintained the graduation rate from to while non- participating schools showed declining graduation rates over the same period.

School Counselor Corps Impact on the Dropout Rates

School Counselor Corps Impact on the Graduation Rate

Increase in College Preparation Data SCCP grantees were required to submit data related to college, including the number of college and scholarship applications submitted, the number of FAFSA applications submitted and the number of students accepted into a postsecondary institution. In the second year of the program, grant recipients show increases in the following: –The number of submitted scholarship applications; –The number of college applications submitted; –The number of submitted FAFSA forms; and –The total amount of scholarships received.

Impact on Increasing College Access Overall findings for the three year program illustrate a positive impact on the students’ college preparation. The table below summarizes the total gains made by the grant program from 2008 to 2011: School Counselor Corps College Related Data (2008 to 2011) Year OneYear TwoYear Three Number of Completed Free Applications for Federal Student Aid 1,2403,4052,752 Number of College Applications Sent 8,9119,92212,053 Number of Scholarship Applications Submitted 3,5437,6126,153 Total Scholarship Dollar Amount Received $18,172,719$23,682,426$32,826,836

School Counselor Corps Grant Program The legislature approved $4.8 million in distribution for another grant cycle in May –33 proposals were reviewed by CDE and Counseling and Career preparation specialists in the field and 22 were recommended for funding and approved for funding by the State Board of Education. –88 schools will be served and 60.5 new professional school counselor positions will be created.

School Counselor Corps Grant Quality of Plan –Adopting standards recommended by the American School Counselor Association (ASCA); –Providing quality professional development; –Using data over time; and –Setting measurable goals. Development of Partnerships –Institutions of higher education, postsecondary service providers, or community based organizations and businesses; and –External education agencies, and/or community, and/or business workforce partners.

School Counselor Corps Grant Post-Secondary Preparation –Providing a culture of postsecondary planning; –Developing Individual Career and Academic Plans (ICAPs); –Involving leaders to increase the effectiveness of postsecondary preparation in the school; –Using data to improve existing programs; and –Providing access to accelerated coursework and remediation courses. Adequacy of Resources –Cost effectiveness; –Sustainability of program; and –Supplementing of current resources.

Evaluation and Reporting Each education provider that receives a grant through the program will be required to report, at a minimum, the following information to the Colorado Department of Education on or before April15th of each year during the term of the grant The number of school counselors hired using the grant funds (include the student-to-counselor ratio) ; Any professional development programs provided using grant funds (hours, attendees, summary detailing the impact of the PD);

Evaluation and Reporting A comparison of the following for the years prior to the receipt of the grant and the years for which the education provider receives a grant: –dropout rates, –graduation rates, –postsecondary and workforce readiness rates (percentage measured by the education provider), –college matriculation (number of completed FAFSA’s, college applications, scholarship applications, received scholarship dollar amount, and the percent of students accepted into post-secondary institutions) and –Remediation rates (program structure, number of students, and number of hours);

Evaluation and Reporting –Information indicating an increase in the level of postsecondary preparation services provided to secondary students at recipient schools including the following: –incorporation of ACSA standards; –individual career and academic plans (number of completed ICAPs, percentage of completed ICAPs, summary of ICAP implementation, number of student internships and career exploration); –enrollment in pre-collegiate preparation programs (number of active programs, student enrollment in active programs); –post-secondary or vocational preparation programs (student changes in enrollment in available programs, description of AP,IB, college level).

Evaluation and Reporting Monitoring and Improvement site visits as a part of the School Counselor Corps Grant program. People to InvolveTime Plan for the DayCounselor(s) and Principal8:30 am – 9:30 am Shadow CounselorCounseling Staff9:30 am – 12:00 pm Student Discussion Eight Randomly Selected Students 12:10 pm - 1:10 pm or Available Lunch Hour Leadership Team DiscussionLeadership Team (e.g., Principal, District Grant Coordinator) 1:10pm - 3:00pm

Budget and Fiscal Management Interim Financial Report: January 2012 Final Revisions, if Any: Mid April Annual Financial Report: September 1, 2012

Budget and Fiscal Management Budget revisions must be approved prior to changes – the CDE Program Manager detailing budget request In the request should include a clear description of all proposed expenditures. –An Example: »Insufficient - $3,150Professional development »Sufficient - $3,150 Professional development for 2 Counselors to attend the ACT conference (Registration $350 x 3, Airfare $450 x 3, Lodging $ 250 x 3)

Budget and Fiscal Management No Supplanting –Funding counselor positions that were previously funded by general funds is considered supplanting and is not an allowable expenditure. –Another example would be if an applicant is requesting SCCP funds for a counseling position that is already funded through district funds and there would be position cost savings from a SCCP award. This would be considered supplanting and is not allowable. Annual Financial Report –Annual Financial Report is the final expenditure report –The budget summary sheet has the budget and Annual Financial Report included.

Contact Manager: Charles E. Dukes (P) (C) Fiscal Support: Marti Rodriguez (P)