ESSER Newsletter - December 2021
- Wed, Nov 24 2021
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Greetings, School Leaders!
November was a busy month for ESSER announcements – so December's newsletter is coming to you a bit early! As our schools and communities prepare for the holidays, this newsletter is intended to streamline all relevant ESSER news, including previously announced changes in the data reporting deadline and the ESSER III application due date.
More importantly, we are providing a new resource to help you and your stakeholders better understand all the ESSER terminologies and lanes. This infographic delineates ESSER funding allocated directly to LEAs and ESSER funding that is subgranted by the Arizona Department of Education
Jump to a section of the newsletter:
- ESSER Set Aside Opportunities for LEAs
- Upcoming ESSER Deadlines
- ESSER Office Hours
- Creative ESSER Investments
- Addressing Disrupted Learning (ESSER III)
Upcoming ESSER Set Aside Opportunities for LEAs
PAX Good Behavior Game
In November, The Arizona Department of Education announced a two-year partnership to provide social-emotional and academic professional development training to Arizona teachers with the PAX Good Behavior Game (PAX GBG), a powerful, evidence-based practice consisting of proven instructional and behavioral health strategies. A previous partnership between the Arizona-based PAXIS Institute, the Governor’s Office of Youth, Faith, and Family (GOYFF), and the Arizona Healthcare Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) trained over 3,800 teachers and community leaders over the last two years.
Visit www.paxis.org/pax-arizona/ to learn more and sign up for fully funded trainings in PAX Good Behavior Game.
ADE SEL Courses
The Arizona Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Course is a FREE online, self-paced, self-guided course. It focuses on understanding the Arizona Department of Education adopted CASEL SEL Competencies and how to implement social emotional learning systemically and systematically within schools or organizations.
The course utilizes CASEL’s four focus areas and consists of six learning modules. Course completion will support your school or organization to build a strong foundation in social emotional learning that includes equity based, culturally responsive and trauma sensitive practices as well as providing strategies and practices to strengthen adult SEL, and to promote and integrate SEL for students.
There are three course options: Individual Educators, Teams and Train the Trainer. Please click on the link for more information: Arizona SEL Course
Discovery Education
Still need to sign up for Discovery Education's learning platform,? This award-winning platform is now available to all Arizona educators and students at no cost! Information on how to register your school or LEA with a simple passcode can be found on our webpage.
Are you wondering what resources Discovery Education offers in your area of focus? Read their December newsletter or attend one of the below upcoming webinars just for Arizona educators and administrators!
- Discovery Ed & Rural Schools
- Discovery Ed & English Language Learners
- Discovery Ed & Social Emotional Learning
- Discovery Ed & CTE
Email [email protected] with any questions.
New Pathways for Youth - Seeking Volunteer Mentors
As a beneficiary of ADE federal recovery funding (ESSER), New Pathways for Youth will be able to expand its reach to more than 1,000 youth in Maricopa County. You can join in these efforts by volunteering as a mentor. New Pathways for Youth works with high-school-aged kids who have experienced high levels of adversity. Youth are matched with a volunteer mentor who serves as a caring and stable adult in their life and learns the New Pathways research-based curriculum with them.
RSVP for an upcoming info session in December to learn about possibly getting matched with youth as soon as January: https://npfy.org/get-involved/
All in Education – Parent Educator Academy Recruitment
An initiative designed to place passionate parents in the classrooms of schools to shift the trajectory on workforce development to start growing talent where it matters most – parents – and advancing them into future positions of influence.
The Parent Educator Academy is a free training course that will help participants become prepared to better support their children in navigating the virtual classroom environment. Participants will also receive valuable in-demand skills from certified trainers to help them become job-ready.
Participants will be paired with instructional leads at their school site to collaborate and provide support, guidance and mentorship to the parent educator. This program will be fulfilled in partnership with The New Teacher Project (TNTP) who will be the lead in carrying out the instructional training sessions.
Now Accepting Interest Forms for The 2021 / 2022 Cohort
https://allineducation.org/pea/
For questions about these opportunities, please email [email protected].
Upcoming ESSER Deadlines
Grant Application Deadlines
Eligible organizations, including LEAs, can now apply for ESSER III set aside funds (those available at the discretion of the state) by completing a competitive application through the Arizona Procurement Portal website at app.az.gov. Applications are due by December 10, 2021, at 5:00 pm.
The last day to submit questions about the application is December 3, 2021. Before submitting a question, we encourage you to review our new ESSER III Set Aside Funds: Application FAQ.
ESSER III LEA Allocations (Public Districts and Charters Only)
The deadline for LEAs to apply for their allotment of ESSER lll funds has been extended to February 1, 2022.
Data Reporting
The data reporting process is on pause for those LEAs that applied for and received ESSER I, II, and III funds. ADE is working with the US Department of Education and will provide an update when data reporting may resume through the GME ESSER Reporting Supplement.
Safe Return to In-Person Learning Plans
As part of receiving ESSER III funds, LEAs must complete Safe Return to In-Person Learning plans every six months. The first plan was due by November 24, 2021. If you have not yet turned it in, please do so as soon as possible.
If you have already submitted a Safe Return to In-Person Learning plan, your next report is due six months after the date of submission. Please reach out to your ESSER specialist with any questions or for more information.
ESSER Safe Return to In-Person Learning Plan Specialists | LEA Assigned Specialist Alphabetical by LEA Name | Email Address | Office Number |
Kelly Curtin | A-Cha | 602-542-9551 | |
Roman Soltero | Chi- Jo | 602-542-2972 | |
Linda McKeever | Ja - Phoenix A-D | 602-542-3895 | |
Teresa Morales | Phoenix E-Y | 602-542-5711 |
Upcoming ESSER Office Hours
Struggling with your ESSER I, II or III application or revision? Attend one of our standing office hours with an ESSER specialist! Registration not required – simply click the links below to access the office hours on the given time and date.
Have a question before one of these dates? Reach an ESSER specialist at any time at [email protected].
December
December 2 from 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM
*Please note that these sessions are for LEA Allocations only. Questions related to the separate ESSER III Set Aside Application, which is available to LEAs, universities, non-profits, and other community organizations, should be sent to [email protected]. You can also review our new FAQ.
Creative Uses of ESSER Funds
Each month, we will highlight creative uses of ESSER investments in LEAs across the state. However, we know that each school community has unique contexts and needs – and ADE’s ESSER Team is available to discuss how to leverage your ESSER dollars to best to meet those needs.
Don’t hesitate to start a conversation with our team. Devon Isherwood @ 602-3640379 [email protected] or Allison Barbor @ 602 542-3068 [email protected] or email [email protected] .
Santa Cruz Valley leverages funds for preschool, modified calendar
Santa Cruz Valley Unified School District is allocating their ESSER funds to systematically accelerate the implementation timeline of their district’s existing long-term, strategic plan. To achieve the goals of their cohesive vision, they are funding multiple initiatives, including:
- Transitioning to a modified calendar to provide 2-week intersessions. This will extend learning opportunities and provide immediate and timely interventions for both accelerated learning and enrichment.
- Fully funding preschools to ensure a strong start for all students, particularly English learners.
- Fully implementing their Personized Learning Model, including designing and building optimal learning environments to provide flexibility across all instructional avenues (before, during and after school) and provide student choice and voice and sense of belonging. Implementing this model includes funding the necessary materials, supplies and professional learning for staff.
Interested in learning more about the Santa Cruz Valley’s ESSER investments? Reach out to their district leadership.
Stephen Schadler, Assistant Superintendent [email protected]
David Verdugo, Superintendent [email protected].
Addressing Disrupted Learning
Curious what other districts and charters are doing to address Disrupted Learning? Review their submissions on our website to find out more: https://www.azed.gov/esser/addressing-disrupted-learning
In Pierce Elementary School District, their plans to address disrupted learning include the reduction of classroom sizes by maintaining a Kindergarten teacher and hiring a 4th-grade teacher to ensure the district does not have combination classes. The district will provide summer school and the use of an aide will allow the district the opportunity to work with all students closely and will provide multiple opportunities for small group or 1:1 instructions and interventions to students of all demographics who are struggling to meet grade-level expectations.
The district will focus on students who are economically disadvantaged, English language learners, migrants and children with disabilities. These students seemed to struggle the most during distance learning and the previous year
