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"Autumn passes and one remembers one's reverence.”
– Yoko Ono
Annual Child Count Survey
It’s time for the annual child count. The deadline for submission will be here soon.
The purpose of the Annual Child Count Survey is to provide the U.S. Department of Education (USED) with data required by Title I, Parts A and D, of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), for use in determining state allocations for Subpart 1 and Subpart 2 programs. In addition to the computation of grants, the survey provides the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and USED with current information on the location and number of children living in institutions for neglected and delinquent children.
KDE requires all Kentucky school districts to complete the Annual Child Count Survey to ensure federal compliance and to keep current records on all eligible institutions in the state.
Federal funding for children and youth who are considered neglected, delinquent or at-risk is directly affected by this count and is subject to an audit by USED. It is important the information submitted annually is complete, accurate and well documented. The Annual Child Count Survey is in the Grant Management Application and Planning System (GMAP) for both Subpart 1 and Subpart 2.
If you have questions regarding institution and student eligibility for the annual child count, you may reference the Title I, Part D Handbook, starting on page 18. Visit KDE’s Title I, Part D website to view additional neglected and delinquent (ND) program resources.
Subpart 1:
All state agency child counts must be submitted by Friday, Dec. 5. This is a one-day count, on a date selected by your state agency director. An email will be sent from the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) or Department of Corrections (DOC) director regarding the selected count day for which all data for the Subpart 1 child count will be pulled.
For information about the process or GMAP navigation, reference the Child Count Guide, PowerPoint and Webinar on the Title I, Part D webpage (at the right side of page under “related resources”) or email Monica Higgins.
To help verify child count data, Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice facilities will need to upload their school calendars in GMAP before submission. The school calendar provides documentation that helps verify child count data by showing the number of days per year that the program operates.
KDE will hold a virtual refresher meeting for the annual child count Subpart 1 survey on Monday, Nov. 10, at 9:30 a.m. ET. You should have received a meeting invitation through email. If you would like to attend and have not received an invitation, please reach out to Monica Higgins. If you cannot attend the live meeting, don’t worry – we will record the meeting and email it to coordinators after the live meeting.
Subpart 2:
All local education agency (LEA) child counts must be submitted by Thursday, Nov. 6. The count period is Oct. 1-30.
For information about the process or GMAP navigation, reference the Child Count Guide, PowerPoint and webinar on the Title I, Part D, Subpart 2 website (at the right side of page under “related resources”) or email Wes Blake.
To verify child count data, LEAs will need to run the student ND Child Count ad-hoc report after Oct. 30 to capture all students enrolled within the 30-day count window. Any additional students will need to be added in the specified survey portion in the GMAP report. For information concerning access to the ad-hoc reports in Infinite Campus, email Margalee Conlee. More information regarding the Annual Child Count will be sent via email.
KDE will be holding a virtual refresher meeting for the annual child count Subpart 2 survey on Tuesday, Oct. 28, at 10 a.m. ET. We will briefly review the process, address FAQs, and give coordinators an opportunity to share best practices and ask questions. You should have received a meeting invitation by email. If you would like to attend and have not received an invitation, please reach out to Wes Blake. If you cannot attend the live meeting, don’t worry – we will record the meeting and email it to coordinators after the live meeting.
Facility Eligibility
The U.S. Department of Education has recently advised states to ensure that all facilities meet eligibility requirements, per 34 C.F.R. § 200.90, which defines eligible institutions for delinquent youth as “a public or private residential facility that is operated primarily for the care of children and youth who have been adjudicated to be delinquent or in need of supervision.”
Over the past couple of years, the U.S. Department of Education is finding facilities that do not meet the eligibility requirements because they do not primarily care for adjudicated youth. In practical terms, we must ensure that all facilities receiving Title I, Part D Subpart 1 and Subpart 2 funds in Kentucky primarily serve adjudicated youth. This means that if a facility served 100 students, at least 51 of those students must have been adjudicated, or court ordered, to reside in the program in order for the facility to comply with federal regulations regarding facility eligibility.
KDE staff will begin by referencing facilities’ websites to ensure their purpose is to primarily serve adjudicated youth. Then KDE staff will reference the Kentucky Educational Collaborative for State Agency Children membership report to verify that all facilities meet eligibility requirements, specifically confirming that the majority of the youth they serve have been adjudicated to be delinquent or in need of supervision.
KDE will not make any funding changes for the fall 2025 Child Count, but we will notify any facilities on the cusp of losing eligibility and provide technical assistance to them before we update their eligibility for the fall 2026 Child Count. Please reach out with any questions or concerns to Wes Blake or Monica Higgins.
Engagement
If you are looking for ways to engage your students in learning content, you may want to consider Break Free Education’s* upcoming, and ongoing initiatives for the 2025-2026 school year:
Educational Initiatives: Curriculum mini-units offer opportunities for students to engage in meaningful and relevant project-based learning. These units are intended to be used as core content or supplemental projects and include a national contest.
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Unworldly: Creative Writing Exploration (October): Students will learn about outer space and the potential benefits of its exploration. They will consider classic science fiction stories to understand creative world-building and will then practice journalism skills to create a newspaper from the perspective of future outer space settlers.
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Unspoiled: National Parks All Subject Quest (November): In this multi-subject initiative, students will explore the land, people, and legends of our country's national parks by incorporating all four subject areas: math, science, English and social studies. Students will study earth science concepts and solve for linear equations while addressing real world issues affecting national parks.
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Unending: Fibonacci Sequence Study (December): Students create a piece of art using the Fibonacci sequence.
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Unconstruct: Design Thinking Challenge (January): Students create a solution design and build a prototype using cardboard
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Unleashed: Race Car Challenge (February): Students create a balloon-powered race car and build a track.
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Unbeatable: Courtside Math Competition (March): Students create a data-driven basketball team. Through this initiative, students will take a shot at mastering math concepts in probability and statistics using March Madness as the backboard. Students will analyze player and team stats, predict game outcomes and understand the role data plays in the game.
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Words Unlocked: Poetry Competition (April): Students write and perform original poetry based on a prompt.
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Unacknowledged: Historical Legacy Exploration (May): Students create illustrated legacy maps declaring how they are to be remembered.
Ongoing Initiatives/Resources*:
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Freedom Reads Book Club: A monthly book club including a book lottery, discussion questions, student reflection journals and more. (partnership with Reginald Dwayne Betts)
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Creative Writing: A 3-unit creative writing curriculum to engage students in the power and joy of writing poetry, fiction and drama.
*This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute an endorsement by the Kentucky Department of Education.
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