Notice of Grant Opportunity
New Jersey Charter Schools Start Up Grant Program
Cadre 13
Planning Grant
Lucille E. Davy
Commissioner of Education
Jay Doolan
Assistant Commissioner
Division of Educational Standards and Programs
Donna Best
Acting Manager
Office of Charter Schools
January 2008
Application Due Date: February 26, 2008
New Jersey Department of Education
P.O. Box 500
Trenton, NJ 08625-0500
http://www.state.nj.us/education
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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
RONALD K. BUTCHER ………………………………………….. Gloucester
President
ARCELIO APONTE ……….……………………………………… Middlesex
Vice President
Kathleen A. Dietz ……………………………………………. Somerset
DEBRA ECKERT-CASHA………………………………………… Morris
EDITHE FULTON …………………………………………………. Ocean
JOSEPHINE E. HERNANDEZ ……………………………………. Union
FREDERICK H. LAGARDE, JR....………………………………... Passaic
ERNEST P. LEPORE ……..………………………….……………. Hudson
KENNETH J. PARKER …………………………………………… Camden
DOROTHY S. STRICKLAND…………………………….……..… Essex
Lucille E. Davy, Commissioner
Secretary, State Board of Education
It is a policy of the New Jersey State Board of Education and the State Department of Education that no person, on the basis of race, color, creed, national origin, age, sex, handicap or marital status, shall be subjected to discrimination in employment or be excluded from or denied benefits of any activity, program or service for which the department has responsibility. The department will comply with all state and federal laws and regulations concerning nondiscrimination.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
When responding to this Notice of Grant Opportunity (NGO), applicants may also access the standard "Discretionary Grant Application (DGA)" for additional information governing the grant program.
See www.state.nj.us/njded/grants/discretionary/apps/ or call the Application Control Center (ACC) at 609-633-6974.
SECTION 1: GRANT PROGRAM INFORMATION PAGE
1.1 Description of the Grant Program 2
1.2 Eligibility to Apply 2
1.3 Statutory/Regulatory Source and Funding 3
1.4 Dissemination of This Notice 3
1.5 Technical Assistance 4
1.6 Application Submission 4
1.7 Reporting Requirements 5
1.8 Assessment of Statewide Results 5
SECTION 2: PROJECT GUIDELINES
2.1 Project Design Requirement 6
2.2 Budget Design Considerations 7
2.3 Budget Requirements 8
SECTION 3: COMPLETING THE APPLICATION
3.1 General Instructions for Applying 12
3.2 Evaluation of Applications 12
3.3 Application Component Checklist 13
APPENDIX A 14
· Documentation of Charter School Service to Municipal
(Urban) Aid Program Communities – Form and list of municipalities.
APPENDIX B 16
· Allowable Expenditures
APPENDIX C 18
· Charter Schools Planning Grant - Application Forms
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SECTION 1: GRANT PROGRAM INFORMATION
1.1 Description of the Grant Program
The goal of the New Jersey Charter Schools Grant Program Cadre 13 Planning Grant is to increase the number of viable and successful charter schools in New Jersey through the support of the planning and implementation of newly approved charter school applicants’ educational and organizational plans. As a result of this increase, more students will be provided with expanded educational opportunities. The goals and objectives and educational plan must reflect the approved final and complete charter school application.
This grant program is a three-year program. The charter schools eligible for Cadre 13 funds have declared their intention to open their doors in September 2008.
Planning period: The period of time prior to the charter school’s initial opening to admit students.
Implementation period: The period of time subsequent to the charter school’s initial opening to admit students.
Traditionally, charter schools open in September, which becomes a transition month between the planning and implementation periods. For the purposes of this grant program, the month that the charter school opens will be considered part of the planning period.
The planning period will start April 1, 2008 and end September 30, 2008. Implementation 1 (continuation grant) will start October 1, 2008 and end September 30, 2009. Implementation 2 will start October 1, 2009 and end July 31, 2010.
1.2 Eligibility to Apply
This is a multi-year, targeted grant open to the following applicants who applied for a New Jersey charter in July 2007:
Paul Robeson Charter School
Funding is contingent upon timely and complete submission of all required grant application materials.
The charter school’s grant application is comprised of the documents required in this NGO; project title page/cover sheet, statement of assurances, board resolution, project description, project activity plan, budget detail forms and budget summary forms as well as the approved final and complete copy of the charter school application.
1.3 Statutory/Regulatory Source and Funding
The applicant’s project must be designed and implemented in conformance with all applicable state and federal regulations. The New Jersey Charter Schools Grant Program is 100 percent federally funded under the U.S. Department of Education Public Charter Schools Program (P. L. 103-382, Part C—Public Charter Schools). Grant funds are Restricted Revenue, and the awarded amount for the New Jersey Charter Schools Grant Program must stay with the charter school. Control of funds must remain with the board of trustees of the charter school. Final awards are subject to the availability of New Jersey Charter Schools Grant Program funds.
Available funding for the planning period will be in the amount of $150,000.
Applicants may apply for an additional $15,000 for a special focus or theme for their school, such as science and technology, performing arts, or Montessori, to name a few. The budget items related to such a program must be clearly identified in the budget as their approval will be at the discretion of the Office of Charter Schools, and the program should be thoroughly described in the project description portion of the grant application.
Additional funding for implementation year one and implementation year two awards is subject to the availability of the New Jersey Charter Schools Grant Program funds and the grantee’s satisfactory performance during the planning period.
The grantee charter school is expected to complete the goal and objectives laid out in the approved grant application, complete planning/implementation activities established in its grant agreement, and make satisfactory progress toward the completion of its multi-year application for charter plan. Failure to do so may result in the withdrawal by the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) of the grantee’s eligibility for the continuation of grant funding. The Department of Education will remove ineligible, inappropriate or undocumented costs from funding consideration.
The Department of Community Affairs, Division of Local Government Services, designates municipalities eligible for the CY2006/FY2007 Municipal (Urban) Aid Program pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:27D-178. If the applicant’s proposed charter school will serve one of the eligible municipalities, the data collection form attached as Appendix A should be completed and submitted with your application. The Department collects this information in order to document distribution of Charter Schools Program funds to the state’s Municipal (Urban) Aid Program-eligible communities.
1.4 Dissemination of This Notice
The Office of Charter Schools (OCS) will make this notice available to charter applicants listed in Section 1.2 of this notice and the county superintendent in each of the counties where eligible agencies are located.
Important: This NGO constitutes the complete application package. All application forms are attached. All applicants are encouraged to consult the instructions in the Discretionary Grant Application (DGA), which contains guidance and instructions for the forms included with this NGO.
The DGA is available on the NJDOE web site at: http://www.nj.gov/njded/grants/discretionary/apps/ or by contacting the Application Control Center at the New Jersey Department of Education, River View Executive Plaza, Building 100, Route 29, P.O. Box 500, Trenton, NJ 08625-0500; telephone (609) 633-6974; fax (609) 777-1051.
Additional copies of the NGO are also available on the NJDOE web site (above) or by contacting the Office of Charter Schools at the New Jersey Department of Education, River View Executive Plaza, Building 100, Route 29, P.O. Box 500, Trenton, NJ 08625-0500; telephone (609) 292-5850 fax (609) 633-9825
1.5 Technical Assistance
Technical assistance will be provided individually to the eligible applicant agency upon request. Please call Maria Casale at (609) 292-8327 for assistance.
1.6 Application Submission
The Department of Education operates discretionary grant programs in strict conformance with procedures designed to ensure accountability and integrity in the use of public funds and, therefore, will not accept late applications.
The responsibility for a timely submission resides with the applicant. The Application Control Center (ACC) must receive an original and four copies of the cover sheet and grant supplementary materials NO LATER THAN 4:00 P.M. ON February 26, 2008. Without exception, the ACC will not accept, and the Office of Grants Management cannot evaluate for funding consideration, an application received after this deadline. An applicant agency will lose the opportunity to be considered eligible for an award if the application is received after the due date.
The original and four (4) copies of the application must be mailed or delivered to:
Application Control Center
New Jersey Department of Education
River View Executive Plaza, Building 100
Route 29
P.O. Box 500
Trenton, NJ 08625-0500
Applicants are encouraged either to:
· hand deliver the application to the address above which is located in the same complex as the Mercer County Waterfront Park on Route 29 in Trenton, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday (excluding state holidays) and obtain a dated receipt; or
· send the application by Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested; or
· arrange for delivery by an overnight delivery service to ensure timely delivery and receipt of the application.
Postmarks are not acceptable evidence of timely submission. Receipt by the due date and time is required. Applicants are encouraged to obtain a receipt or to sign in upon delivery to verify transmission to the New Jersey Department of Education. Complete applications are those that include all required elements as indicated in the Application Checklist found in Section 3 of this notice. Applications received by the due date and time will be screened to determine whether they are, in fact, eligible for evaluation. The Department of Education reserves the right to reject any application not in conformance with the requirements of this NGO. Applications submitted by fax or e-mail cannot be accepted in any circumstances.
1.7 Reporting Requirements
Grant recipients are required to submit periodic project and fiscal progress reports. For additional information about post-award requirements, see the Grant Recipient’s Manual for Discretionary Grants at:
http://www.nj.gov/njded/grants/discretionary/management
Project and fiscal reports will be due as follows:
Report / Reporting Period / Due Date1st Interim / April 1, 2008 to
June 30, 2008 / July 15, 2008
Final / April 1, 2008 to
September 30, 2008 / December 2, 2008
1.8 Assessment of Statewide Program Results
The Office of Charter Schools will use the data collected from funded charter schools to develop the annual performance report, which will be submitted by the Office of Charter Schools to the U.S. Department of Education. The department will collect agency data and determine the charter school’s progress by assessing the information included in the Charter School Annual Report submitted to the Office of Charter Schools. The department will evaluate change affected by this multiyear grant program through the accomplishment of the mandated goal and the mandated objectives.
SECTION 2: PROJECT GUIDELINES
2.1 Project Design Requirements
When developing an application, the applicant must use the forms included at the end of this NGO. The same forms (with form-specific instructions) are also available in the Discretionary Grant Application (DGA). The application selection process is based upon conformance with the application requirements contained in the DGA and the project specific information contained in Sections 2 and 3 of this NGO.
The mandatory goal of the New Jersey Charter Schools Grant Program/Cadre 13, Planning is for a the applicant to create a viable, innovative and successful charter school through support of the planning and implementation of its educational and organizational program. As a result of this grant program, the number of innovative charter schools will increase in New Jersey, thereby providing students with expanded educational opportunities. The grant program provides funding for the planning and implementation of the newly approved charter school’s educational/organizational plan, academic goals and objectives, and for meeting other start-up related costs.
Funds are intended to provide financial support to ensure that the charter school is adequately prepared to open its doors to students. Each school must use these funds to undertake critical planning activities which include such items as curriculum development, board and staff training and the creation of internal policies and procedures.
Please be advised that the charter school grant funds are not intended to cover all of the types of costs that a charter school may incur during a planning period.
One common challenge for charter schools is the need for formal governance training for board members. As with many new organizations, charter schools experience difficulties with governance issues. One of the outcomes of this grant is to help charter school founders, board members and school leaders proactively meet their legal responsibilities for governing and managing a public charter school.
When designing the activity plan and budget, refer to your approved application for charter, as these grant fund are intended to support the planning process for the charter school. In developing your activities, it is advisable to consult charter school law, and the Office of Charter Schools preparedness visit form. The preparedness visit form is available from the Charter Schools Program Officer. These guidelines will help ensure the successful granting of a charter in July 2008.
There are three required (3) objectives for this program. The activity plan must address all three of these required objectives. Applicants may add additional objectives, subject to review and approval by the Office of Charter Schools. Activities under the objectives may include (but are not limited to) the following:
Objective #1: Development of Governance Capacity
· Training/professional development for lead persons/board members/administrators on governance issues; and
· Acquisition of necessary resource materials.
Objective #2: Development of the Educational Plan
· Development of the educational curriculum to be used when the school opens for students;
· Acquisition of educational materials and equipment for the classrooms to support the curriculum; and
· Professional development for educational staff.
Objective #3: Development of Finance/ School Operation Capacity