ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief)
Looking Back:
THANK YOU to all who registered and attended the October ESSER Virtual Guidance Sessions on October 17-21. There were a total of 10 sessions, covering E-Grants Error Messages, E-Grants Prep, and Processing, the Annual Federal Data Reporting process, School Plan Updates, and Audit & Reporting Compliance. Attendees included school district superintendents, clerks, and trustees, as well as other community stakeholders.
Videos and slides from all past guidance sessions are posted on the OPI ESSER Webpage and YouTube channel.
The second semester of the ARP Afterschool 2022 grant cycle is in full swing. We’ve already seen programs use ESSER ARP funds in amazing beneficial ways, and we look forward to seeing all the innovative uses to come. This grant cycle will end on December 31, 2022. Amendments and Cash Requests should be submitted no later than November 25, 2022, in order to be processed by the deadline.
District Monthly Status Reports are available on our OPI ESSER website. We have designed this report which shows Allocations, Expenditures, and Remaining Balances within the different ESSER grants for each district. You can find these reports on the OPI ESSER webpage under the Allocation & Status Update accordion tab.
The ESSER CARES I funding cycle closed on September 30, 2022. The Final Expenditure Report (FER) should have been submitted through E-Grants no later than October 25, 2022. Thank you to all of the schools who spent down the ESSER I grant. We’ve seen ESSER funds used to support students in so many ways – from ventilation and sanitation to student technology access, and beyond. Let’s keep up the great work as we finish out ESSER CRRSA II and ESSER ARP III!
The ARP Summer Enrichment 2022 grant cycle has also closed. Thank you to all the schools and organizations that hosted summer programs with the help of this grant. Please make sure the Final Expenditure Report (FER) is submitted by November 25, 2022.
Looking Ahead:
OPI is committed to a system of support for school districts, students, and parents throughout Montana that provides an array of services. Individual district consultation on ESSER funding is available upon request. Please reach out to Wendi Fawns at wendi.fawns@mt.gov to schedule a time for your district.
OPI has formed an ESSER Review Committee. This committee will be helpful in assisting OPI in training, processing, and compliance process revisions for ESSER. The committee will meet remotely on a monthly basis and cover topics such as: data collection/annual reports, plan revision, training topics and format, and overall ESSER support. We are seeking 10-15 committed district members to participate. If interested, please reach out to Wendi Fawns or Rebecca Brown for more information.
School Plan updates will be due in December. Every 6 months, schools must update their Safe Return plan and the ARP ESSER (Use of Funds) plan, and updates must be sent to OPI. Throughout the month of November, make sure to gather meaningful stakeholder input in order to update your School Plans. OPI will be offering some Guidance Sessions on the School Plans during November (see below).
November’s Virtual ESSER Guidance Sessions may focus on the following topics:
- Updating School Plans (Safe Return and ARP ESSER) and Annual Federal Data Reporting
- New Superintendent and Clerk Tips
- Meaningful Stakeholder Consultation and Communication
- E-Grants Error Messages
- Friday will have some Open Office Hours times available for Q&A
All sessions will be recorded and posted on the OPI ESSER Webpage. More information and updates will be sent out as we get closer to those sessions.
The Afterschool and Summer Enrichment grants for School Year 2022-23 will be reopening this fall under the updated name ESSER Extended and Expanded Learning Opportunity (EELO). These grants will focus on Math and Reading programming efforts, combined with best practices promoting Social/Emotional Learning. To help prepare for these grants, we encourage applicants to actively explore local partnerships to best leverage these funds and improve student outcomes. View our site HERE for more information.
Many resources are available on the OPI ESSER webpage including but not limited to:
Questions? Contact:
Wendi Fawns, ESSER/EANS Director at wendi.fawns@mt.gov
Rebecca Brown, ESSER Program Manager at rebecca.brown@mt.gov
The OPI is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, require an alternate format, or have questions concerning accessibility, contact the OPI ADA Coordinator, 406-444-3161, opiada@mt.gov, Relay Service: 711.
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