New 21st CCLC Grant Application FAQ's

Most Common Grant Application Questions January 2nd - 19th, 2024

Q:  The Indirect Cost (IDC) rate for FY25 has not been approved by ADE yet. Can a placeholder for the IDC be used in the Grants Management System?    

A:  The Indirect Costs (IDC) amount can be included in 6600-2100 as a placeholder if the Grants Management System has not loaded the Indirect Costs rates for your district. 

Q:  Can 21st CCLC funds be used to pay for field trips?            

A:  A percentage of the site's funding can be utilized to assist with transportation costs to and from the 21st CCLC program.

See 21st CCLC Guidance Handbook Fiscal Year 2024 Edition, (pp. 15-16) for more information on field trips.

Q:  Can applicants use other funding sources to fund the 21st CCLC or are we restricted to the amount received from this grant?  

A:  Please see the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance and consider the following:

• Grants funded by the 21st CCLC program may supplement, NOT supplant, existing out-of- school funding or programs. (FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance pg. 8)
• Sustainability (FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance pages 24 and 32)
• The applicant clearly describes how 21st CCLC activities will coordinate with other funding streams and public resources
• The applicant clearly articulates plans to continue critical components of 21st CCLC services beyond the scope of the grant

Q:  What are specific examples of data sources that would be considered ‘relevant’ verifiable data?  

A:  Income eligibility falls under “other verifiable data,” by definition.  It is available under the “Enrollment” tab here: Accountability & Research Data | Arizona Department of Education (azed.gov)

Q:  Which students from the private school are eligible to attend the program?          

A:  Private school students are eligible to attend the applicant’s program if:

•  they live within the applicant’s school attendance boundary
•  they qualify under the needs’ assessment information and targeted objectives of the submitted grant application

Q:  How do we get data on private school students since a private school may not use the same data as the public-school site?      

A:  The applicant will determine the data that will be collected, and this should be discussed at the consultation meeting. Note: Access to student level data protected by FERPA is necessary to complete required state and federal reporting for this federal grant. 

Q:  How do applicants determine which private school students to include in the program if a qualifying private school chooses to participate?                 

A:  Applicants determine whether private school students will be included in the program as discussed and determined during the consultation meeting to complete Form A - AFFIRMATION OF CONSULTATION FORM (Participation of Private School Students) with the private school.

Q:  Our district is on a four-day week schedule, could we write Friday programing into our proposed plan?

A:  Yes, if your regular school days are defined as Monday through Thursday, the 21st CCLC program could run on Fridays when the regular school day is not in session.

Q:  Are we eligible to apply for the 21CCLC Grant for grades K-5 only, even though we are a K-8 school? 

A:  No, the total school population must be included to apply.  Your program may target students in Grades K-5; but total school enrollment must be submitted. Please see Pages 4-5 in the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance under "Absolute Priority."

Q:  Our school’s enrollment on October 1st was 134. However, the school site’s enrollment on January 4th was 145. Is it possible to use current enrollment when it comes to applying for the funding formula?

A:  No, all Applicants must use The Oct1 – October 1 Enrollment Report located in ADEConnect’s AzEDS Portal to determine the number of Regular Attendees for the Funding Formula.

Q:  Our school account was just added to Grants Management Enterprise (GME), and we would like to apply for the 21st CCLC grant, but the application doesn’t appear in GME under the funding applications. Who do we need to contact?                

A:  Since your school account was recently added to GME, please see page 17 of the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance where you will find step-by-step guidance on how to access the application in GME.

If additional technical assistance is needed with submission of the online application, please contact Grants Management Staff at 602-542-3901/866-577-9636.

Q:  What “Priority Points” are offered for the FY25 – Cycle 20 21st CCLC Grant?          

A:  Priority Points will be offered for:

1. School Labels “Comprehensive Support & Improvement” (CSI-LA or CSI-G) Schools and “Targeted Support & Improvement” (TSI or aTSI) Schools
2. Rural Classification “Town” and “Rural”  

Please see pages 25-26 of the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance for Priority Points School Labels and Rural classification verification and links.

Q:  Will applicants be required to use the Free-Reduced Price percentages from this year?     

A:  Yes, the Free-Reduced Price percentages from this year will be used to determine eligibility.  

Q:  What are the eligibility requirements to apply for the 21st CCLC Grant?   

A:  To be eligible to apply for this grant, applicants must meet two criteria:

1.   ABSOLUTE PRIORITY - serve students who attend schools where there is not less than 40 percent economically disadvantaged students in the total school population.
2.   MINIMUM TOTAL ENROLLMENT- total enrollment of each school site must be greater than 138 students on October 1 to be eligible to apply for the 21st CCLC Grant.

Q:  Who do I contact for questions about the 21st CCLC Grant application?   

A:  All inquiries about the 21st CCLC Grant application are submitted to: [email protected]

Week 1 - Jan. 20th - 26th, 2024 

Q:  We are considering becoming an Alternative School, are we still eligible to apply?

A:  By changing to an Alternative School classification, it would likely be considiered a new school and ineligible to apply at this time.   The school must have been open for at least one year prior for application submission to be eligible. See the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance under Cautions for more information (pg. 10).  

Q:  Is the Charter responsible for providing transportation to private school students?

A:  The Charter is not required to provide transportation to private school students, but transportation costs are allowable. See the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance for information about transportation (pg. 20).

Q:  What are the geographic boundaries for Charter schools which may not have clearly defined geographic boundaries like school districts?

A:  The geographic area (attendance boundary) is determined by your Charter school/site and will be known by either your Charter Leadership, Registrar or Facilities Department. Please verify with them as to your sites outlined geographic boundary.

Q:  If a school already has afterschool classes funded out of Title IV-A or other funding sources, can it then use 21st CCLC funds to continue these afterschool classes if awarded?

A:  All 21st CCLC funds are required to supplement or enhance any existing out of school time offerings and cannot supplant or replace other funding sources.  See the 21st CCLC Guidance Handbook Fiscal Year 2024 Edition for more information on supplement not supplant (pg.3).

Q:  After a school is finished with the 5th year of funding, can they reapply for a new 21st CCLC grant award?

A:  Schools can reapply after the 5th year if they have remained in substantial compliance for the grant's 5 years. See the 21st CCLC Guidance Handbook Fiscal Year 2024 Edition for more information about Substantial Compliance (pgs. 34-35).

Q:  What registration and meal costs do we include in our budgets for FY25’s required professional development (PD)?

A:  Budget should include costs for the REQUIRED annual professional development for the Principal and Site Program Coordinator(s). Example: Registration fees for the Site Coordinator and Principal to attend the REQUIRED 21st CCLC PD @ $200 per attendee = $400.  See the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance regarding registration and meal costs information on your proposed budget (pg.19).

Q:  May we count Title I funding after school program hours toward our 8 hours of 21st CCLC program hours?

A:  Title I program hours may be counted toward your 21st CCLC program if you’re supplementing and not supplanting.  See the 21st CCLC Guidance Handbook Fiscal Year 2024 Edition for more information on supplement not supplant (pg.3).

Week 2 - Jan. 27th - Feb. 2nd, 2024

Q:  Do applicants choose to serve multiple sites from the same district?         

A:  Each district may submit up to 5 qualifying sites in their FY25 application. See the FY25 – Year 1 Grant Application Guidance under Application Tips (pg. 26).

Q:  Can you confirm the number of characters allowed per grant narrative response?              

A:  There is a limit of 10,000 characters for each answer.  This includes commas, periods, spaces, tables, charts, etc. See the FY25 – Year 1 Grant Application Guidance (pg. 27).

Q:  Who should be signing the signature box at the bottom of the Assurances section in GME?            

A:  The signature should reflect the name of the person completing the application in GME. 

Q:  Concerning the Program Director, would I be eligible for the position as a salaried employee?       

A:  Eligibility for a position within a district would be determined by the district’s Human Resources office. See the FY25 – Year 1 Grant Application Guidance section under DISCLAIMER (pg. 21).

Q:  We have had the grant for many years.  We would like to use the same academic goals but change the percentages of growth, is that possible?              

A:  The stated academic objectives must align with your schools targeted student’s needs. See the FY25 – Year 1 Grant Application Guidance about SMART objectives (pgs. 22 & 31).

Q:  Our principal resigned this year, do we still use the current principal’s name on the application?   

A:  Yes, use the current Principal’s name at the time of the application.

Week 3 - Feb. 3rd - 9th, 2024 

Q:  Does the requirement for student participation (8 hours per week, 4 days per week) have to be for students or can this apply to family engagement events?     

A:  These minimum requirements are in place to support student’s meeting the state’s rigorous academic standards. Family engagement is an element of the 21st CCLC grant. See the FY25 – Year 1 Grant Application Guidance on reporting requirements and Direct Student Services and Adult Family Services (pgs. 10 & 28-29).

Q:  In order to be eligible for 21st CCLC funding, do direct services have to be provided to students?            

A:  Yes, the purpose of the 21st CCLC grant is to support student participants in meeting the States’s rigorous academic standards.

Q:  When completing Form A, does the private school need to sign any kind of document?   

A:  No, Form A will contain the signature of the person completing the form.

Q:  I would like to know if our district is eligible to apply for the 21st CCLC grant.   

A:  The minimum eligibility requirements to apply for the 21st CCLC grant are:

• Applicants must serve students attending schools where at least 40% of the students attending are economically disadvantaged.
• Total school enrollment for each site is 139 students or higher.

If your site(s) meet these minimum requirements, they are eligible to apply.

Q:  We understand private schools may not receive program funds if awarded, how are funds distributed for services?            

A:  See the FY25 – Year 1 Grant Application Guidance regarding Private Schools and management of funds (pgs. 15 & 18). Also, on Form A (Affirmation of Consultation) there are topics of discussion provided when in consultation with Private Schools.

Week 4 - Feb. 10th - 16th, 2024 

Q:  Is there a certain number of community notifications required?          

A:  The number of communications is at the applicant’s discretion. Additionally, you may peruse previously awarded grants for ideas on Community Notification. See the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance for information on how to access Previously Awarded Grants (pg.34).

Q:  What should community notifications entail, a blanket announcement of our intent to apply in general or something more detailed?     

A:  It is up to each individual applicant what the community notification should entail and whether the community notification should be a blanket or detailed announcement of intent to apply. Additionally, you may peruse previously awarded grants for ideas on Community Notification. See the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance for information on how to access Previously Awarded Grants (pg.34).

Q:  Should student attendance from two different 21st CCLC funded sites served at one location be kept separate?             

A: Y es, student attendance must be tracked to their specific 21st CCLC funded site. See the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance for information under Cautions (pg.11, item #8).

Q:  Can students from two different 21st CCLC funded sites be served at one location?           

A:  Yes, students from two different 21st CCLC funded sites may be served in one location. See the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance for information under Cautions (pg.11, item #9).

Week 5 - Feb. 17th - 23rd, 2024 

Q:  Does 21st CCLC require an external partnership?        

A:  Yes, all 21st CCLC sites are federally required to maintain at a minimum one external partner annually for the duration of the grant.

Q:  Can an application be submitted with Validation “Errors” and/or “Warnings? 

A:  Applications can only be submitted if there are no Validation “Errors”. To review any Warnings and/or errors in GME, click on All “Messages” under Validation. Then, the system will direct you to each warning and/or error listed in detail. Then, click “Review” to the left of each item listed, so the system will direct you to the section that needs to be addressed.

Final List - Feb. 24th - March 4th, 2024

Q:  If we are waiting for the Private School Affirmation to get back to us, can we submit with a note that it is pending?                

A:  No, Form A must be completed 100% and uploaded to the online application via Grants Management Enterprise by 11:59 pm, March 4, 2024.

Q:  What other verification resources can we use to confirm our free and reduced lunch percentage?        

A:  Please see the FY25 Year 1 – NEW Grant Application Guidance under the Absolute Priority section about verifiable risk factor data. (pgs. 4-5).

Q:  Where do I verify if my school is a CSI or TSI school?  

A:  The application has the link to verify school labels, you may also contact School Support and Improvement at 602-364-2269 and they can assist you.