RFP 2025-0500-0149 Migrant Continuous Improvement Cycle
The Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) is seeking for a contractor to support DEED’s Migrant Education Program with conducting a statewide comprehensive needs assessment, developing a statewide service delivery plan, and evaluating the effectiveness and implementation of the program.
To administer and manage the Title I, Part C Migrant Education Program (MEP) on a statewide basis, the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) must update its current comprehensive needs assessment, as well as its state plan for service delivery that meets the requirements of section 1306(a) of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education (ESEA) statute and 34 CFR 200.83 of the Title I regulations. Section 1306(a) of the statute requires states to develop a comprehensive state plan for service, and 34 CFR 200.83 of the Title I regulations provides the minimum components of such a plan.
Section 1304(c)(5) of the federal statute requires State Education Agencies (SEAs) to determine the effectiveness of their migrant education programs and projects, where feasible, using the same approaches and standards that are used to assess the performance of students, schools, and local educational agencies under Title I, Part A. Furthermore, 34 CFR 200.84 requires that each SEA determine the effectiveness of its program through a written evaluation that measures the implementation and results achieved by the program against the state’s performance targets in 34 CFR 200.83(a)(1), particularly for those students who have Priority for Services (PFS). In addition, 34 CFR 200.85 requires the implementation of the evaluation results at the state and local levels for program improvement.
Section 1306(b)(4) of the statute allows Title I-C funds to be consolidated in a Title I schoolwide (SW) program under certain specific conditions. Section 1306(b)(4) reads: “Notwithstanding section 1114, a school that receives funds under this part shall continue to address the identified needs described in paragraph (1) and shall meet the special educational needs of migratory children before using funds under this part for schoolwide programs under section 1114.” Title I regulations also address consolidation of funds in a schoolwide program. 34 CFR 200.29(c) reads: “A school must meet the following requirements if the school consolidates and uses funds from these programs in its schoolwide program:
(1) Migrant education. Before the school chooses to consolidate in its schoolwide program funds received under part C of Title I of the ESEA, the school must—
- Use these funds, in consultation with parents of migratory children or organizations representing those parents, or both, first to meet the unique educational needs of migratory students that result from the effects of their migratory lifestyle, and those other needs that are necessary to permit these students to participate effectively in school, as identified through the comprehensive Statewide needs assessment under §200.83; and,
- Document that these needs have been met.”
The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Migrant Education, has developed toolkits to provide a guide for instituting and maintaining a Continuous Improvement Cycle of program planning, implementation, and evaluation aligned with the current needs and priorities of migratory children and families. The toolkits are:
• Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) Toolkit | Migrant Education Program
• Service Delivery Plan (SDP) Toolkit | Migrant Education Program
• Program Evaluation Toolkit | Migrant Education Program
The current state Comprehensive Needs Assessment was completed in 2018 and the State Service Delivery Plan, including the plan for evaluating the MEP, was completed in 2019. An evaluation of the Migrant Education Program and its 2019-2020 implementation of the Service Delivery Plan was finalized in 2021. The current CNA, SDP, and 2019-2020 evaluation can be found on the department’s Title I, Part C webpage: Education of Migratory Children - Education and Early Development (alaska.gov)
In the past, findings from federal monitoring by the Office of Migrant Education found a lack of clarity of whether the State Educational Agency (SEA) and the districts have identified the unique needs of migratory children resulting from the migratory lifestyle, and those other needs that are necessary to permit these students to participate effectively in school, and what measures the SEA uses for determining that these have been met, prior to allowing MEP funds to be consolidated into schoolwide programs. As a result, the state updated both the needs assessment and the state service delivery plan with particular attention to these issues. Therefore, the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) must clearly delineate the unique educational needs of migratory children that result from the effects of their migratory lifestyle and other needs that are necessary to permit these students to participate effectively in school. The Service Delivery Plan (SDP) must include measurable program goals and outcomes that will be used to determine whether the unique needs of migratory children, as described by the CNA, have been met. A new program evaluation will need to be designed and completed following the updated CNA and SDP to accurately assess the Alaska MEP’s implementation and results.
See attachments for additional information.