1 CCR 301-102
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION RULES FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE RETAINING TEACHERS GRANT PROGRAM 1 CCR 301-102 [Editor’s Notes follow the text of the rules at the end of this CCR Document.] _________________________________________________________________________ AUTHORITY: ARTICLE IX, SECTION 1, COLORADO CONSTITUTION. 22-98-101 ET SEQ. OF THE COLORADO REVISED STATUTES (C.R.S.).
0.0 STATEMENT OF BASIS AND PURPOSE
The Retaining Teachers Grant Program, 22-98-101 et seq., C.R.S., requires the State Board of Education to promulgate rules as necessary to implement the program. At a minimum, the rules must include: the application process, including requirements; criteria for the award of grants, including award priorities; the duration of the grants; and the approved uses of the grant.
1.0 DEFINITIONS
1.1 “Board of Cooperative Services" means a board of cooperative services created pursuant to article 5 of this title 22.
1.2 “Department” means the department of education created and existing pursuant to section 24-1- 115, C.R.S.
1.3 “Fund” means the retaining teachers fund created in section 22-98-104.
1.4 “Grant Program” means the retaining teachers grant program created in section 22-98-103.
1.5 “Local Education Provider" means a school district, a board of cooperative services that operates a public school, a charter school that is authorized by a school district pursuant to part 1 of article 30.5 of this title 22, or an institute charter school that is authorized pursuant to part 5 of article
30.5 of this title 22.
1.6 “Postsecondary Institution" means an area technical college, a local district college, or a state institution of higher education, as defined in section 23-18-102.
1.7 “School District" means a school district in Colorado that is organized and existing pursuant to law but does not include a local college district.
1.8 “State Board” means the state board of education created pursuant to section 1 of article IX of the state constitution.
1.9 “Teacher” means any person employed to instruct students in any school in the state, including licensed special service providers.
2.0 RETAINING TEACHERS GRANT PROGRAM
2.1 The department shall create and administer the retaining teachers grant program to assist local education providers in retaining teachers by implementing one or more of the following initiatives designed to improve the ability of a local education provider to retain teachers.
2.1.1 Job-sharing for teachers;
2.1.2 Providing on-site early childhood care services for family members of educators;
2.1.3 Robust multi-year teacher induction and mentoring programs for new teachers;
2.1.4 Peer review and mentorship programs and other career development and advancement strategies;
2.1.5 Programs to provide professional development for the creation and implementation of career advancement pathways for master teacher and teacher leadership positions for effective teachers;
2.1.6 Incentive programs to recognize and retain highly effective teachers;
2.1.7 Increased planning, mentoring, and collaboration time for new teachers and mentor teachers that reduces teacher-student contact hours for teachers but does not result in reduced instruction time for students; and 2.1.8 Increased use of technology in blended learning initiatives to create opportunities and financial incentives for teacher development and career advancement and cost savings to support salary increases, including but not limited to:
3.0 APPLICATION PROCESS AND REQUIREMENTS
3.1 The department shall provide information to the local education providers concerning the grant program, the requirements for applying for a grant, the initiatives that local education providers may implement using grant money, and the availability of assistance in writing grant applications.
3.2 On an annual basis on a date determined by the department, local education providers interested in obtaining funding shall submit a retaining teachers grant application electronically to the department, using the application form provided by the department.
3.3 Local education providers must assure that grant funds are used to supplement local education provider funding and is not used to supplant funding.
3.4 Each application submitted shall include, but need not be limited to the following:
3.4.1 Evidence describing the level of difficulty that the applicant encounters in retaining teachers, including teacher turnover and retention rates, the specific reasons for the difficulty, and a specific accounting of the grade levels and subjects for which the applicant is unable to retain teachers;
3.4.2 An accounting of the existing monetary or other resources available to the applicant to use in implementing initiatives to retain teachers;
3.4.3 A description of the initiative to retain teachers that the applicant intends to implement using the grant, how the initiative is designed to address the specific issues causing the difficulty with retaining teachers, and the applicant’s strategy to build capacity;
3.4.4 The specific, measurable goals that the applicant expects to achieve in implementing the initiative, an explanation of the applicant’s capacity to achieve the goals, and how the applicant expects to measure attainment of the goals; and 3.4.5 The cost, including cost-effectiveness, of implementing the initiative and the applicant’s plan for sustaining the initiative after the grant money is no longer available 3.5 Local education providers are encouraged to partner with other local education providers, nonprofit entities, or postsecondary institutions to apply for a grant.
3.6 Upon request, the department shall provide technical assistance in writing the grant application described above and in complying with the annual review requirements described in section 6.0.
4.0 APPLICATION EVALUATION
4.1 In reviewing grant applications to determine which applicants should receive grant funding, the department and the state board shall prioritize applicants meeting the following criteria:
4.1.1 A high number of positions for which an applicant is unable to retain teachers; and 4.1.2 Evidence of a high rate of teacher turnover if the applicant is a low-performing school or within the low-performing schools operated by the applicant.
4.2 In addition, the department and the state board shall consider:
4.2.1 The applicant's capacity to successfully implement the proposed initiative and the likelihood that the proposed initiative will increase the applicant's ability to retain teachers;
4.2.2 The cost-effectiveness and quality of the proposed initiative; and
4.2.3 The applicant's plan for sustaining implementation of the initiative after the grant money is no longer available.
5.0 AWARD PROCESS
5.1 On an annual basis, the department shall make recommendations for grant awards to the state board.
5.2 Subject to available appropriations, the state board, taking into account the recommendations of the department, shall award the grants from money appropriated to the fund.
5.3 Each grant awarded through the grant program continues for three budget years, subject to annual review by the department and renewal by the state board as described in section 6.0.
6.0 ANNUAL REVIEW AND REPORTING
6.1 The department shall annually review the progress achieved by each grant recipient in attaining the goals of the initiative funded by the grant and recommend to the state board that the grant be extended or revoked.
6.2 For the annual review, grant recipients shall submit, at a minimum, the following information to the department:
6.2.1 How the grant money was used to fund the initiative;
6.2.2 Narrative explanation and evidence of grant outcomes against the goals set in the beginning of the year and in the grant proposal; and 6.2.3 Updates to the goals set in the grant proposal based on the progress made.
6.3 Taking into consideration the recommendations of the department, the state board shall extend the grant only if it is determined that the grand recipient is making adequate progress toward achieving the goals of the initiative.
6.4 On or before January 15, 2019, and each year thereafter, the department shall submit annually to the state board, the joint budget committee, and the education committees of the senate and house of representatives, or any successor committees, a report concerning the implementation of the grant program, including, at a minimum, the following information:
6.4.1 The name of each grant recipient and the amount of each grant;
6.4.2 A description of the initiative to be implemented with each grant and a report of the progress made by each grant recipient in achieving the goals of the initiative;
6.4.3 For the reports submitted in 2021 and 2022, an evaluation of the effect of the grant program in improving teacher retention by local education providers and in reducing the overall teacher shortage in the state;
6.4.4 Any recommendations for legislative changes to improve the effectiveness of the grant program; and 6.4.5 For the report submitted in 2022, a recommendation concerning whether to continue the grant program.
_________________________________________________________________________ Editor’s Notes History New rule eff. 12/30/2018.