4605(00);4605(EC);3999

Early CHOICES is the preschool least restrictive environment (LRE) initiative in Illinois, with an overall goal of providing professional development (PD) and technical assistance in increasing high-quality, inclusive options for early childhood students with special needs. Early CHOICES provides training, consultation, and resources to the early childhood community in Illinois. Early CHOICES supports research and evidence-based effective practices in Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE).

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part B, Section 619 discretionary funds and supports ISBE’s goals and the Illinois State Performance Plan for IDEA Part B and Part C.

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Hire a Project Leader and LRE Specialist(s) who will provide training and technical assistance to professionals and families across the State. Maintain a staffing structure that provides sufficient support to programs. Staff members providing training must, at a minimum, have a bachelor’s degree and maintain the appropriate certification, credential, or accreditation required by the specific PD that is being offered. In addition, trainers should have relevant experience in providing training and PD on early childhood education and, ideally, experience with Preschool for All (PFA) and ECSE. Hire a Project Leader. This person will oversee the planning of grant activities, the staff hired through the grant, the budget, and reporting requirements. He/she serve as a main communicator with ISBE. Hire LRE Specialist(s), who will assist in developing and presenting PD and technical assistance activities. They must be qualified content experts and have knowledge of research-based practices in early childhood/ECSE and adult learning theory. Hire support staff who will assist in registration, data input, and other administrative functions, as needed. Attend one statewide PD meeting in the fall and one statewide PD meeting in the spring with the STARNET system. The responsibility for planning the statewide meetings is rotated on an annual basis among the regional STARNET projects and the Early CHOICES grantee. Maintain a sufficient budget for PD for the Project Leader and LRE Specialists to stay current in the early childhood field. Select an appropriate staff member to represent the project on applicable statewide committees for early childhood. Assist the ISBE Early Childhood Division staff with the implementation of other statewide activities including improvement activities specific to Indicators 6 and 7 of the ISBE, Part B State Performance Plan. Early CHOICES staff will collaborate with districts as they support and increase the percentage of children ages 3-5 with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) attending a regular early childhood program and receive the majority of special education and related services in that environment. Early CHOICES staff will collaborate with districts as they support and increase the percentage of preschool-aged children 3-5 with IEPs who demonstrate improved early childhood outcomes. Early CHOICES will maintain a data-sharing agreement with ISBE for the purposes of sharing meaningful data with school districts regarding their indicator data. Align PD and technical assistance with the Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards, the Illinois Professional Teaching Standards, and the Standards for Professional Learning to ensure high-quality programming. Training should also be aligned with the concepts and strategies of Adult Learning Theory. Maintain compliance with the ISBE Professional Educator Licensure requirements for PD providers and establish a system to provide credentialing. Embed opportunities for reflection, feedback, and integration of skills learned into PD offerings. Establish a center for the provision of training and technical assistance to the early childhood community. Develop a comprehensive website for information dissemination, registration, etc Provide support and assistance for families of children with disabilities and include families in all training and technical assistance opportunities. Maintain regular and ongoing communication with ISBE Early Childhood Division regarding the PD planning and implementation. Collaborate with other technical assistance projects serving the early childhood community through trainings and statewide planning efforts. Lead the statewide LRE Stakeholders Consortium to increase awareness and opportunities for inclusion for children ages 3-5. The group should include stakeholders throughout the State, identify priority areas, and provide support to implement the work of the Consortium. Develop a system for maintaining records of participation in PD and utilization of library resources. Collect and provide data to the ISBE Early Childhood Division, as requested, regarding number and type of trainings, technical assistance, number of participants, and trends in utilization of PD and resources. Develop a written framework and implement a system for PD evaluation and CQI, guided by written policies and procedures. The framework should include data and information to be collected as well as the measures, methods, and processes to be used to evaluate specific PD. The evaluation framework and plan will also include strategies for measuring the quality and impact of the PD provided. The data elements, measures, methods, and processes must be specific and consistent with CQI. This framework will be developed in consultation with the ISBE Early Childhood staff. Analyze the data collected and adjust PD in consultation with ISBE Early Childhood Division. Provide an annual report to the ISBE Early Childhood Division in a timely manner. Maintain regular and ongoing communication with ISBE Early Childhood Division regarding data and evaluation. Conduct an ongoing evaluation to ensure trainings meet the needs of ECSE professionals, parents/guardians, and families throughout the project region.

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Education Organizations;

LEAs

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Project Grants

Education

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RFP - Applications are found at https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Request-for-Proposals.aspx. Applications should be scanned into one PDF with all supporting documents and required signatures then uploaded into the ISBE Attachment Manager is found at https://sec1.isbe.net/attachmgr/default.aspx Continuation Grant - Applications are found within ISBE’s IWAS system

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RFP - ISBE's Merit Based Review (Award Process) is conducted following Sections C and D of ISBE's Merit Based Review Policy https://www.isbe.net/Documents/Merit_Based_Review_Policy.pdf Continuation Grant - Applications are reviewed using modified Merit Based Review Process

RFP - Applications are due 45 calendar days from release of RFP. Continuation Grant - Applications are due within 30 calendar days of receipt

RFP - Tentative Award announcements are generally released via email 90 calendar days after the close of the RFP. Continuation Grant - Applications are generally approved or returned for changes within 30 calendar days of receipt

Appeals: The application is subject to appeal as described in Section E of ISBE's Merit Based Review Process https://www.isbe.net/Documents/Merit_Based_Review_Policy.pdf. Continuation Grant – N/A

Renewals: This program is renewed annually for an additional two years, pending funding and grantee compliance with program requirements. Grantees are required to update their plan and submit a current budget each year. Funding in the subsequent years will be contingent upon compliance with federal and state law, state grant-making rules, passage of sufficient appropriations for the program, and satisfactory performance in the preceding grant period.

There are no matching requirements for this grant. The program is a restricted rate program subject to supplement not supplant requirements.

Programs will be offered PD and other resources by qualified staff with the appropriate education level, certification, or credential to provide quality PD and technical assistance. Develop PD training and technical assistance, including workshops, webinars, consultation, fellowships, referrals, and materials loan and dissemination. Identify needs and respond to requests for PD support of staff involved in ECSE. Develop and deliver training and support for parents/guardians and families, including workshops, webinars, consultation, fellowships, and material loan and dissemination. Identify needs and respond to requests for support of families involved in ECSE. Collaborate and coordinate with other early childhood initiatives, agencies, technical assistance providers, and personnel. Implement an evaluation system to collect and provide critical data for Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) and provide information and data to the ISBE Early Childhood Division.

Reports: Expenditure reports are required on an ongoing basis. Performance reports are required to indicate the deliverables completed semiannually. An annual project report is also required.

Audits: In accordance with the provisions of 2 CFR 200, Subpart F - Audit Requirements, nonfederal entities that expend financial assistance of $750,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Non-Federal entities that expend less than $750,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in 2 CFR 200.503

Records: Grantees must retain records related to grant funds and compliance for a period of 3 years from the date the grantee or subgrantee submits its final expenditure report for that funding period. 34 CFR 80.42.

561-58657-4400-00-00-02

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Program regulations are at 34 CFR 300, and 34 CFR 76-77,79,80-82,84-86, and 97-99.

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Illinois State Board of Education 100 North First Street Springfield IL 62777-0001

IDEA information in SAM.gov - https://beta.sam.gov/fal/bcc6bf09286e464c8cedbaa1596ca877/view; Early CHOICES information on isbe.net - https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Early-Childhood-Professional-Development.aspx

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10/22/2021