School Immunization Compliance Training (reminder)
On Wednesday, Oct. 2 from 10-11:30 a.m., members of the School Health Team Including the school principal or assistant principal, immunization points of contact (IPOCs), school health suite staff, and school registrars should attend a technical assistance call hosted by DC Health and OSSE on how to use the new reports in the updated Immunization Compliance Portal (ICP) and implement the updated School Immunization Policy. Click here at 10 a.m. on Oct. 2 to join the call (no registration required).
The best place for DC families to access immunizations is with your family medical provider as part of their comprehensive well-child care. If a family does not have a health care provider or they have difficulty securing an appointment, they can select from DC Health’s list of pediatric vaccine providers in every ward. Visit the DC Health website for up to date information on vaccine requirements and opportunities.
An additional vaccine opportunity:
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Cedar Hill Urgent Care – GW Health at 2228 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave SE, Washington, DC 20020: Open daily from 8 a.m.-8 p.m. For appointments, call (202) 715-4444.
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Updated Eligibility Criteria and Extended Deadline: Advancing the Recruitment and Retention of Our Workforce
OSSE's Advancing the Recruitment and Retention of Our Workforce (ARROW) is announcing the launch of the 2024-25 cohort of the First Year Cadre for school-based behavioral health providers, i.e., school social workers, school psychologists and counselors (school counselors and licensed counselors), who began working in a school-based setting on or after Nov. 1, 2022! The First Year Cadre is an opportunity for providers in their first year working in a school-based setting to build foundational skills necessary to be successful in the school environment. The cohort will run from October 2024 to June 2025. Please note that the criteria have been updated, and those who began working in a school- based setting on or after Nov. 1, 2022 are now eligible to apply. Applications are open through Friday, Oct. 11, 2024.
DC Alumni Early Career Outcomes Survey: Help DC Government Understand the Paths that Students Take After Graduation in Order to Best Serve Future Classes of Students
Spread the word! The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education is asking all DC alumni who earned a high school diploma or equivalent degree in 2017, 2018, and 2019 to share their thoughts in the Alumni Early Career Outcomes Survey by Friday, Oct. 4. The survey will take 10-15 minutes to complete and all graduates who complete the survey will earn a $15 gift card. Interested survey participants must provide their contact information in this interest form. Thank you in advance for sharing your experience with us!
Applications Open for United State Senate Youth Program (reminder)
DC public and public charter high school juniors and seniors with a strong interest in government, public service and history are encouraged to apply today for the United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP), a unique and annual educational experience for outstanding high school students interested in pursuing careers in public service.
Typically, two student leaders from each state will spend a week in Washington, DC experiencing their national government in action. Student delegates will hear major policy addresses by Senators, cabinet members, officials from the Departments of State and Defense and directors of other federal agencies, as well as participate in a meeting with a Justice of the US Supreme Court. All transportation, hotel and meal expenses will be provided by the Hearst Foundations.
In addition, each delegate is awarded a $10,000 college scholarship for undergraduate studies, with encouragement to pursue coursework in history and political science.
Rising high school juniors and seniors may obtain a USSYP application through their high school principals, school counselors and social studies teachers or they may inquire directly to their state selection contacts through the (see selection contacts listing on home page). All student delegates to USSYP are selected by state-level education officials – the United States Senate and the Hearst Foundations do not provide individual states’ applications or choose the delegates and alternates.
To learn more and share with interested students, . The deadline to apply is Oct. 28, 2024.
Proposed Early Childhood Transition Policy – Public Comment Opportunity (reminder)
OSSE invites the public and LEAs to participate in public comment and public hearings regarding the proposed Early Childhood Transition Policy. The proposed policy establishes state-level processes and clarifies requirements to ensure the smooth and effective transition of children with disabilities from early intervention services under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to school-based special education and related services under IDEA Part B. The proposed policy is available for review on OSSE's Special Education Policy Notices, Hearings, and Comments page.
The proposed policy will be posted for a 30-day public comment period closing Monday, Oct. 7, at 5 p.m. Individuals or entities wishing to comment on the proposed policy should submit their comments in writing via email to OSSE.publiccomment@dc.gov. All comments must be received no later than 5 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 7. Two public hearings will be held virtually via Microsoft Teams on Monday, Sept. 16 from 12-2 p.m. and on Wednesday, Sept. 18, from 5-7 p.m. Individuals interested in attending or testifying at the public hearings should register here.
For questions, please contact Christie Weaver-Harris at Christie.Weaver-Harris@dc.gov.
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Attendance Data Workshop for School
OSSE is excited to invite school teams to an Attendance Data Workshop on Oct. 9. 2024 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. During this hands-on and interactive session, attendees will:
- Learn about and discuss broad attendance trends in DC;
- Explore attendance data for their school; and
- Experiment with using attendance data to inform intervention plans.
The workshop is designed for school-based teams, which could include roles such as attendance coordinators, Student Success Team (SST) coordinators, data leads, or any other people actively involved in working with attendance data. Participants should bring laptops so they can work with the data in real time.
The session will be held in person at 1050 First St. NE. Please sign your team up here and we will follow up with more information. We look forward to seeing you!
October LEA Special Education Points of Contact Webinar
On Wednesday, Oct. 16, from 10-11 a.m., OSSE will host the quarterly webinar training for all LEA Special Education POCs (LEA SPED POCs). During this training, OSSE will provide important information relevant to your role as the LEA SPED POC. The agenda will include the following:
- Policy reminders and updates;
- IDEA monitoring reminders and updates;
- Teaching and Learning reminders and updates;
- Special programs reminders and updates;
- Nonpublic reminders and updates;
- Transportation updates; and
- Reminders and announcements.
All LEA SPED POCs should plan to participate in each scheduled webinar, as well as share the content, updates, and announcements with relevant staff within your LEA. If you have not already signed up for the 2024-25 webinar series, please register here.
If you have any questions about this webinar, please contact LaShonda Wilson Carter at LaShonda.Wilson@dc.gov.
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Standards Tools and Resources (reminder)
Are you excited about the new DC K-Adult Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) standards? We are too! OSSE is pleased to provide a variety of inclusive SEL resources to support schools with implementation. Visit the OSSE SEL website today to access the DC SEL Wheel Poster and K-Adult SEL standards document, both of which are available in multiple languages, as well as our 3-Year SEL Roadmap. Stay tuned for more tools and resources coming soon!
For questions, or to request OSSE staff drop off DC SEL Wheel Posters to your LEA, please email Marcus Hughes, School Climate Specialist, at Marcus.Hughes@dc.gov.
Foundations of Second Language Acquisition for All Educators Serving English Learners (reminder)
OSSE’s Division of Teaching and Learning (TAL) is pleased offer a professional learning pathway for District educators including school leaders and service providers serving English learners (ELs) grades pre-K through 12 in DC public and public charter schools. The Foundations of Second Language Acquisition for all Educators Serving English Learners course provides the foundational knowledge and skills needed to effectively serve ELs and build the capacity of educators through eight meaningful and engaging virtual sessions.
Session: Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT)
Scholars generally agree that the basic principles of culturally responsive teaching (CRT) include having the knowledge, dispositions, and skills necessary to teach in a diverse society (Villegas & Lucas, 2002). In this session participants will be able to identify the phases of culture shock, understand the meaning of CRT, and acknowledge the significance of parental involvement in fostering academic progress for ELs.
Participants will earn one professional learning unit (PLU) for full attendance and participation. Register here to attend on Tuesday, Oct. 1, from 10-10:45 a.m. or here to attend on Wednesday, Oct. 2, from 3-3:45 p.m. For questions, contact Lucia Cuomo at Lucia.Cuomo@dc.gov.
Early Childhood Special Education Community of Practice (reminder)
OSSE is excited to announce the Early Childhood Special Education Community of Practice. This community of practice is designed to create authentic opportunities for LEA pre-K special education points of contact (POCs) and those who support this population to collaborate with others and improve learning outcomes for children with disabilities, ages 3-5, who are enrolled in early childhood special education programs. Participants will discuss topics identified by those currently serving children in our local early childhood programs. The sessions will begin Oct. 2, 2024, from 10 – 11 a.m. The identified topics are listed below.
Please register for the community practice sessions using the links above. For questions, please contact Dawn Hilton, Supervisory Coordinator for Special Education (Part B-619), at Dawn.Hilton1@dc.gov.
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FY24 Grants Close Out Schedule
As a reminder, please ensure your LEA has obligated all your fiscal year 2024 (FY24) grants by Monday, Sept. 30, 2024.
Your current grant balances are available in the Enterprise Grants Management System (EGMS). If you have questions about the grant close out process, contact your OSSE grant manager for support.
The current fiscal year for your grants, FY24, closes on Sept. 30, 2024. To ensure a smooth close out process, please review your grant balances in EGMS and complete the following steps:
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Sept. 30, 2024 – Obligate FY24 grant funds. This is the last date that you may obligate funds from your FY24 grants. Maintain documentation for your records and future grants monitoring.
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Oct. 15, 2024 – Apply for liquidation extension on American Rescue Plan-Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP-ESSER) and American Rescue Plan-Homeless Children and Youth (ARP-HCY) federal recovery grants. If you made obligations by the Sept. 30 deadline and would like to continue reimbursing on your federal recovery grants in FY25, your LEA may apply for liquidation extension. If interested, see additional details in OSSE’s ARP-ESSER liquidation extension guidance letter and ARP-HCY liquidation extension guidance letter.
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Nov. 1, 2024 - Submit FY24 Grant Budget Amendments. This is the deadline to submit grant budget amendments in EGMS. This ensures OSSE can approve your request and allows for sufficient time for you to submit final reimbursement requests by the Dec. 2, 2024 deadline.
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Dec. 2, 2024 - Submit FY24 Reimbursement Requests. This is the final deadline to submit reimbursement requests in EGMS for any grant ending in FY24.
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Jan. 15, 2025 - Submit FY24 Close Out Reports. This is the last day for you to approve your close out reports in EGMS, which then allows you to access any applications available for continuation funding (i.e., carryover from FY24 into FY25).
OSSE Grantees Must Submit Updated Payment Information
Grantees’ Automated Clearing House (ACH) payment information in the District Integrated Financial System (DIFS) expires every three years. To ensure your reimbursements can be sent directly to your chosen account, ACH payment information needs to be renewed before expiration.
To support grantees in maintaining updated payment information, OSSE emailed impacted organizations in early July to provide instructions for updating ACH payment information before it expires on Sept. 30, 2024.
To prevent payment delays, grantees with expiring ACH information should submit the following forms, in addition to a bank letter or voided check, to osse.suppliermaintenance@dc.gov as soon as possible. All three forms were emailed to the impacted organizations in early July.
- Master Supplier Form
- W-9 Form
- ACH Form
For questions or additional information, please contact Mabel Kennedy at Mabel.Kennedy@dc.gov.
Fiscal Year 2025 Due Nov. 15, 2024
The consolidated application for the FY25 Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Formula grants, which includes SOAR Academic Quality and SOAR Early Childhood, is now available in EGMS. The deadline for LEAs to submit applications is Friday, Nov. 15, 2024. The award period for these grants is July 1, 2024, through Sept. 30, 2025.
An optional pre-application webinar will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 16 which will provide an overview of the purposes of the SOAR Formula grants, provide information on how to complete the consolidated application in EGMS, and share basics of project budgeting and allowable costs. Please register to attend here. The webinar will also be recorded and posted on the OSSE SOAR Formula webpage along with the FY25 SOAR Formula application guide.
For questions or additional information about the FY24 SOAR Formula Consolidated application, contact your SOAR grant manager.
Allocations Now Available: FY25 SOAR Act Formula Grants (reminder)
Allocations for the FY25 SOAR Act Formula grants, which includes SOAR Academic Quality and SOAR Early Childhood, are now available on OSSE’s website.
The FY25 SOAR Formula Consolidated application will be released in EGMS on Friday, Sept. 20, and the deadline for LEAs to submit the application will be 3 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 15. The award period for these grants will be July 1, 2024 through Sept. 30, 2025.
For questions or additional information about the FY25 SOAR Formula Consolidated grant, contact your OSSE grant manager.
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September 2024
October 2024
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