FY19 New Mexico PreK Application

Guidance Document

Using PreK Funds

General Principles

  1. Justification must be included with all requests for reimbursements (RfR) submitted. This includes lesson plans for pre-and-post field trips, cooking, and sensory activities that use food products.
  2. Reimbursements must be submitted at least monthly.
  3. Pre-approval is required for all items, or systems of items over $5,000 (for example, a cart with multiple Ipads is a system)
  4. Pre-approval is required for purchase/adoption of curriculum programs.Anypurchased curriculum mustalignwith the NMEarly Learning Guidelines (ELG), be rated as “effective” or higher by independent research,and beapproved by the PEDprior to purchase.
  5. Salaries for staff who serve multiple programs must be cost allocated proportionately between the programs.
  6. Fieldtripsare chargedto student travel,object55817.

Allowable:

  1. PreK staff salaries and benefits
  2. Classroom materials and supplies
  3. Classroom equipment, including computers, laptops, printers, iPads, tablets, cameras
  4. Playground equipment
  5. Classroom furniture
  6. T.E.A.C.H. or other scholarship/tuition costs
  7. aftersuccessfulcoursecompletion
  8. whenthe RfR is accompanied by a gradereport of “C” or better.
  9. within the fiscal year the classes were completed.
  10. Field trips with an academic purpose. (Must include lesson plans with RfR.)
  11. Cooking activity expenditures accompanied by lesson plans
  12. In-state travel for early childhood meetings, trainings, or conferences
  13. Up to one percent of program services award for administrative costs

Not Allowable:

  1. Entertainment,such asfield tripstomovies or amusement parks
  2. Foodforparent orstaff meetingsorclassroom celebration events
  3. Children’sfood, including mealswhile on fieldtrips
  4. Candy, soft drinks, or other high sugaritems
  5. Out-of-statetravelcosts
  6. In-statetravelotherthanapprovedearly childhood conferencesand training.
  7. Educational assistants funded through the transportation award
  8. Assistants whoaccompanychildrenon the bus in accordance with the child’sIEP (mustbechargedtospecial education).

Family Engagement

  1. Allowable Activities for calculating the required 90 Hours of Family Engagement:
  2. All time allotted for home visits and family-teacher conferences (e.g., two 6-hour days, not including lunch, are set aside for home visits, so count as 12 hours.)
  3. Contact time for family activities (e.g., A family literacy night is from 6:00 to 8:00 pm, so count as two hours.)
  4. Family engagement activities that occur during the day, either during classroom time or at another time, when children are not usually present (e.g., fifth day for four-day a week programs or early dismissal days), provided all parents are invited and there are specific activities related to one or more NM Early Learning Guidelines essential indicators.
  5. Field trips that all parents are asked to attend and that have at least one academically focused activity for families to complete together while on the trip
  6. Kindergarten visits that all parents are asked to attend.
  7. Potlucks and holiday meals with a specific instructional focus linked to an essential indicator
  8. School-wide activities, like science fair or school plays that incorporate a specific time just prior to the event to which the preschool teacher invites the families to the classroom for an activity related to the school-wide event. For example, the 5th grade is putting on a play based on a children’s book. The preschool teacher invites the families to the classroom 30 minutes prior and reads the story aloud, modeling questions that build comprehension. He then provides a handout of suggestions for families to discuss with their child after the event. The additional preschool activities allow the school to count the entire evening as part of the required family engagement hours.
  9. Unallowable Activities for calculating the required 90 Hours of Family Engagement
  10. Take-home activities, reading logs, newsletters, etc.
  11. Individual family volunteer time in the classroom
  12. Field trips with only a limited number of parents invited
  13. School events without a PreK connection activity
  14. Holiday meals or potlucks without an instructional activity

Administrative Requirements

  1. Integrity of Staff Assignments. PreK program administrators must ensure that teachersandeducationalassistantsassignedto PreK classroomswillnotbeassigned tonon-PreK duties.
  2. Regular Walkthroughs. PreK programadministrators must conduct the PreK ClassroomWalkthrough at least monthly.
  3. Coaching. PreK program staff will fully participate in the PreK coaching model, which includes both on-site and video-based sessions. Teachers will participate in a thirty-minute debriefing period following each session.

Glossary

ECERS-3, Early Childhood Environmental Rating Scale, Third Edition. PreK teachers, educational assistants, and administrators complete a one-time online training and conduct an annual self-assessment in each classroom. Training links are available from the PreK coach.

The Early Childhood Observational Tool (ECOT).The ECOT is the online application that houses the Preschool Observational Tool and the Kindergarten Observation Tool (KOT). This application allows teachers to record and store assessment observation notes and rubric ratings, as well as providing robust reporting on the child, classroom, school, district , and state levels.

New Mexico Early Learning Guidelines (ELG). The ELG are the state standards and benchmarks for children birth to kindergarten. The ELG are developmentally appropriate and aligned with Common Core State Standards. The Preschool Observational Assessment is based on the ELG.

FOCUS Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS). PEDFOCUS is the criteria by which preschool programs (NM PreK, Title 1, and Special Education) in public schools are measured. FOCUS was developed and implemented as part of the Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge Grant; both the Children, Youth and Families Department and the Department of Health have versions of FOCUS appropriate for their respective programs. PreK programs must earn and maintain a Five Star rating. PED FOCUS criteria mirrors the PreK Program Standards. The PED FOCUS criteria is available at

Inclusive Environments: The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) defines inclusion in early childhood programs as including children with disabilities in early childhood programs together with their peers without disabilities, holding high expectations and intentionally promoting participation in all learning and social activities, facilitated by individualized accommodations, and using evidence-based services and supports to foster their cognitive, communication, physical, behavioral, and social-emotional development; friendships with peers; and sense of belonging. This applies to all young children with disabilities, from those with the mildest disabilities, to those with the most significant disabilities. For NM PreK, at least 66% of the children served in a PreK classroom are not identified as special education students. (Children who receive “speech-only” services are considered general education students.)

LETRS-EC.Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling‒Early Childhood is literacy training designed for teachers of preschool and kindergarten children. LETRS-EC is not a curriculum model; the program provides descriptions of the development of language and literacy in ways that create a deeper understanding of these important processes while offering practical strategies for building these skills in young children.

Pyramid Model for Social-emotional Development: The Pyramid Model for Promoting the Socialand Emotional Development of Young Children provides a tiered intervention framework of evidence- based interventions for promoting the social, emotional, and behavioral developmentof young children. All PreK staff teachers and educational assistants attend Pyramid training, either in-person or through online modules.

Contact Us

Brenda Kofahl

PreK Program Manager

505-827-6627

Shelly Harrelson

PreK Program Specialist/Data Coordinator

505-827-6516

Catherine Quick

PED Preschool Special Education Coordinator

505-827-6561 OR 505-827-1461

Kathy Ytuarte

Acting Literacy Director

505-827-6512

Brandy De La Riva

Business OperationsSpecialist

505-827-6526