The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is requesting applications under RFA# 701-12-103 from Texas independent school districts and open-enrollment charter schools on behalf of one or more eligible campuses. School districts and open-enrollment charter schools must submit a separate application for each eligible campus. Eligible campuses must meet the following requirements:

The campus serves grades 9 through 12.
The school district or open-enrollment charter school and campus must serve a student population of at least 40% economically disadvantaged students.
The school district or open-enrollment charter school and campus must have received a rating of exemplary, recognized, or academically acceptable in 2011 under the state accountability system.
The campus is not designated as an Early College High School or or Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (T-STEM) Academy by the TEA.
Regional education service centers are not eligible to apply as fiscal agent on behalf of a school district.

Purpose of Program

The purpose of the College for All Pilot grant is to enable a campus to create college and career pathways such as systematic and individual support to prepare students who graduate for postsecondary level course work and technical careers so that every student graduates from high school having earned some college credit from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) Texas General Education Core Curriculum or advanced technical credit program. Participating campuses will provide academic support services to assist all students in meeting standards for college enrollment through successful completion of a Texas Success Initiative assessment.

Project Funding

Funding will be provided for approximately 6-10 projects. Each project will receive a maximum of $100,000 for the 2012-2014 project period. This project is funded through the General Appropriations Act, Article III, Rider 64, 82nd Texas Legislature and private funding.

Project Period

The College for All Pilot grant will be implemented during the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 school years. Applicants should plan for a starting date of no earlier than October 1, 2012 and an ending date of no later than May 31, 2014.

Selection Criteria

Applications will be selected based on the independent reviewers' assessment of each applicant's ability to carry out all requirements contained in the RFA. Reviewers will evaluate applications based on the overall quality and validity of the proposed grant programs and the extent to which the applications address the primary objectives and intent of the project. Applications must address each requirement as specified in the RFA to be considered for funding. TEA reserves the right to select from the highest-ranking applications those that address all requirements in the RFA and that are most advantageous to the project.

TEA is not obligated to approve an application, provide funds, or endorse any application submitted in response to this RFA. This RFA does not commit TEA to pay any costs before an application is approved. The issuance of this RFA does not obligate TEA to award a grant or pay any costs incurred in preparing a response.

How to Apply

This RFA is in paper format. It must be downloaded, completed on the applicant’s computer desktop, printed, and submitted by mail or hand delivery. The complete RFA is posted on the TEA Grant Opportunities page at http://burleson.tea.state.tx.us/GrantOpportunities/forms/GrantProgramSearch.aspx for viewing and downloading. In the “Select Search Options” box, select the name of the RFA from the drop-down list. Scroll down to the “Application and Support Information” section to view all documents that pertain to this RFA.

Applicants’ Conference

An applicants’ conference will be held by webinar on Tuesday, May 1, 2012, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. To reserve a webinar seat, go to https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/385706002. The system requirements for PC-based attendees are Windows 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, or Vista. The requirements for Macintosh-based attendees are Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) or later. Each person attending will be required register the representative’s name and the name, address, and telephone number of the applicant organization.

The entire applicants’ conference will be digitally recorded. Prospective applicants who are not able to attend the applicants’ conference may download the presentation to their computer desktop.

Questions relevant to the RFA may be sent to Laura Gaines at laura.gaines@tea.state.tx.us or faxed to (512) 463-8057 prior to Tuesday, April 24, 2012. These questions along with other information will be addressed in the webinar. The webinar will be open to all potential applicants and will provide prospective applicants an opportunity to receive general and clarifying information about the program and RFA.

Reporting Requirements

LEAs that are awarded grants are responsible for meeting all required deadlines. Failure to meet deadlines may result in loss of funds and could cause the LEA to be identified as “high risk.”

The reporting requirements for this grant are posted on the TEA Grant Opportunities website at http://burleson.tea.state.tx.us/GrantOpportunities/forms/GrantProgramSearch.aspx. In the “Select Search Options” box, select the name of the RFA from the drop-down list. Scroll down to “Critical Events” to view all reporting deadlines that pertain to this grant.

For Further Information

In order to assure that no prospective applicant may obtain a competitive advantage because of acquisition of information unknown to other prospective applicants, any and all questions pertaining to the RFA must be submitted in writing to the TEA contact person listed on the TEA Grant Opportunities website. In the “Select Search Options” box, select the name of the program/RFA from the drop-down list. Scroll down to “Contact Information.”

Copies of the questions and the written answers thereto will be posted on the TEA Grant Opportunities website in the format of frequently asked questions (FAQs) at http://burleson.tea.state.tx.us/GrantOpportunities/forms. In the “Select Search Options” box, select the name of the program/RFA from the drop-down list. Scroll down to “Application and Support Information” to view all documents that pertain to this RFA.

Deadline for Receipt of Applications

Four copies of the application, with an original signature on Schedule #1—General Information on three of the copies (blue ink preferred), must be received 5:00 p.m. Central Time, June 12, 2012, to be eligible to be considered for funding. Send the application to the following address:

Document Control Center

Division of Grants Administration

Texas Education Agency, William B. Travis Building

1701 North Congress Avenue

Austin TX 78701-1494

Sincerely,

Anita Givens

Associate Commissioner

Standards and Programs

Page last modified on 5/8/2012.