Opinion
School & District Management Opinion

School Improvement RFP of the Week

By Marc Dean Millot — April 01, 2008 3 min read
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Like Supplemental Educational Services, but Without the Educational Performance Requirement

From Monday’s issue of K-12Leads and Youth Service Markets ReportAnnouncement: Afterschool and Summer Learning Program Due May 30 (Mar 24) Department of Human Services, Georgia

Their Description:

Research shows that regular participation in quality programs help youth attend school regularly, maintain or improve academic performance, and increase participation in healthy behaviors while avoiding risky behaviors....

The Department of Human Resources, Division of Family and Children Services, Afterschool Services is requesting proposals.... to provide quality afterschool and/or summer learning programs to youth, ages 6 through 19.... The Department is interested in developing a vast network... that will cover the 17 DFCS regions of the state.... Geographic locations and programmatic need... will determine the number of... providers....

The Offeror will provide financial information that would allow... evaluators to ascertain.... adequate liquidity to fund services for at least 60 days.

Match of Funding - The DHR funding is an opportunity to obtain additional dollars for money and resources that are already being spent to support your participants in order to increase the number of participants and the quality of services provided. Each program will be required to provide at least a one-to-one match of funding.... The match must be from a non-federal source. ....

Offeror must provide a full time Program Director.... The Program Director must have a Certificate, Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in... Social Work, Child Development, Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, Middle/High School Education, Organizational and Human Development... or... related field, and... a minimum of two years experience....

Project-based Learning Program... Successful offeror serving elementary and middle school students will offer project-based learning opportunities. Project-based learning is a hands-on and creative approach to teaching, which provides academic support to students in a way that is fun and engaging. Projects... should build on student interest and provide students with an opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned through the actual completion of the project.... The skills acquired through project-based learning programs will support and build on what students are learning throughout the school year. Students will work in small groups to accomplish the goals of the projects. Project-based learning programs should maintain a student to instructor/volunteer ratio of 1:10....

Project-based learning programs can fall into the following categories: Performing and Fine Arts... Math, Science and Technology... Digital Media Sports Management Literacy and Communication Career Exploration....

Offerors planning to serve high-school students will offer apprenticeship opportunities. Apprenticeships must be taught by professionals with real-world experiences in the apprenticeship field.

My Thoughts: 1) Another example demonstrating that State Education Agencies are not the only education agencies in any state.

2) This is another example of a trend where state agencies establish the requirements for entry into a state-wide market for school improvement services.

3) I’ve long argue that states should determine the financial stability of providers as part of their due diligence process, only to be told repeatedly that its too much work. If Georgia can....

4) As I read it, a for-profit firm need not match funding provided here with its own. A school district could pursue these funds, and pay the total to a provider.

5) This program would not be a huge stretch for many Supplementary Educational Services (SES) providers. Per pupil payments are a competitive factor, not a fixed fee, but there is no specific expectation of improvement in student performance.

The opinions expressed in edbizbuzz are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.

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