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(HISTORICAL) CARES Act: Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER) (TX)

 
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    CFDA#

    84.425C
     

    Funder Type

    State Government

    IT Classification

    B - Readily funds technology as part of an award

    Authority

    Texas Education Agency (TEA)

    Summary

    This emergency block grant empowers Governors to decide how best to meet the current needs of students, schools (including charter schools and non-public schools), postsecondary institutions, and other education-related organizations in their State so that faculty continue to teach and students continue to learn. Governors are encouraged to focus these resources on ensuring that all students continue to learn most likely through some form of remote learning. Grant funds awarded under the Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund may be used to—

    1. provide emergency support through grants to local educational agencies that the State educational agency deems have been most significantly impacted by coronavirus to support the ability of such local educational agencies to continue to provide educational services to their students and to support the on-going functionality of the local educational agency; 
    2. provide emergency support through grants to institutions of higher education serving students within the State that the Governor determines have been most significantly impacted by coronavirus to support the ability of such institutions to continue to provide educational services and support the on-going functionality of the institution; and
    3. provide support to any other institution of higher education, local educational agency, or education-related entity within the State that the Governor deems essential for carrying out emergency educational services to students for authorized activities described in section 18003(d)(1) of the CARES Act or the Higher Education Act, the provision of child care and early childhood education, social and emotional support, and the protection of education-related jobs.

    A Governor must award funds to eligible entities (i.e., LEAs, IHEs, and education-related entities) within one year of receiving the State's GEER Fund allocation from the Department, although the Governor should use every effort to award funds to eligible entities on an expedited basis to address student needs. Subgrants should be prioritized for LEAs and IHEs within the State that have been most significantly impacted by coronavirus in order to support their ability to continue to provide educational services to students and to support their on-going functionality.

    • In providing support to IHEs, the Governor determines those IHEs that are most significantly impacted by coronavirus.
    • In providing support to LEAs, the State educational agency (SEA) determines those LEAs that are most significantly impacted by coronavirus. The Department encourages SEAs to consult with the Governor when making this determination.

    A Governor may also award funds to any other LEA, IHE, or education-related entity within the State that the Governor deems essential to carry out emergency educational services to students, provide childcare and early childhood education, provide social and emotional support, and protect education-related jobs.

     

    History of Funding

    TEA - $61.5 million further distributed as,

    • Supplemental Special Education Services Grants to Families - $60 million
    • Windham School District - $1.5 million

    THECB further distributed as,

    • Offset to cuts in state financial aid programs - $57 million
    • Emergency student support for continued enrollment - $46.5 million
    • Education and Workforce Data Infrastructure - $15 million
    • Texas Reskilling Support Fund - $46.5 million
      • Round 1 awardees: https://reportcenter.highered.texas.gov/contracts/grant-records-financial-aid-program-records/texas-reskilling-support-fund-grant-program-round-one-grantees/
      • Round 2 awardees: https://reportcenter.highered.texas.gov/contracts/grant-records-financial-aid-program-records/texas-reskilling-support-fund-grant-program-round-2-grantees/
      • Round 3 awardees: https://reportcenter.highered.texas.gov/contracts/grant-records-financial-aid-program-records/texas-reskilling-support-fund-grant-program-list-of-reskilling-round-3-grantee/
    • Open Education Resources Grant - $10 million
      • Round 1 awardees: Texas State University was chosen to receive a $5,000 Implementation grant for College Writing II (ENGL 1302).*
      • Rounds 2 & 3 were not publicly announced
    • Rapidly expand capacity for high-demand and high-value educational opportunities, including $5 million for work-based learning and apprenticeships - $48.1 million
      • Internship and Apprenticeship awardees can be found https://reportcenter.highered.texas.gov/correspondence/general-correspondence/thecb-awards-48-million-to-higher-ed-institutions-for-internship-and-apprenticeship-programs/
    • Accelerate enrollments, support high-potential students, and provide financial aid for critical student populations - $28.5 million
    • Establish the My Texas Future program to provide curated one-stop advising resources to help traditional Texas students and adult learners to connect with higher education opportunities across the state - $10 million
    • Expand outreach and engagement of adult learners to meet workforce demands of the state and its employers - $4 million
    • Bolster Tri-Agency data information security and accessibility - $4 million


    Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired - $1 million

    Texas School for the Deaf - $800,000


    A full list of allocations has not been made public. Grants Office was able to obtain a list of the allocations for the majority of the funds through FOIA. To get a copy of that list, email helpdesk@grantsoffice.com

    Additional Information

    Governor Greg Abbott will award GEER funding to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) for use towards their strategic priorities in response to COVID-19.


    Texas Education Agency - Texas is pursuing a state-level strategy that will make a robust suite of resources available and ensure support for all LEAs. Based on those discussions, GEER funding allocated to TEA will be utilized to support access to a free distance learning curriculum for all students, a remote dyslexia instruction platform, remote learning monitoring and diagnostics tools, ongoing assistance for districts to support usage and implementation of these tools, training for excellence in remote instruction for district administrators, and may also be made available to eligible LEAs through a standard competitive and informal competitive grant process.


    With GEER funds, TEA announced a new funding program for students with disabilities. The program will enable parents of students with special needs to apply for $1,500 grants for supplemental educational services. Allowable expenses under the new Supplemental Special Education Services (SSES) program include private tutoring, educationally related services and therapies from a licensed or accredited provider, textbooks, curriculum, or other instructional materials, and computer hardware, software, or other technological devices that are used for educational needs. Additional information is available here: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/SSES-FAQ.pdf


    Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board - The Office of the Governor worked closely with the THECB to develop bold proposals for funding with an emphasis on financial and emergency educational aid to current students and potential students. These proposals include emergency aid for significantly impacted students and for Texas workers who need to reskill and upskill, targeted support for high-quality online learning resources, and the development of the state's education data infrastructure and associated analytics to support students' progress to high-value credentials and to bolster the state's broader efforts to advance workforce preparedness and financial recovery. More information is available at https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-allocates-emergency-education-relief-funding-for-texas-higher-education and https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-announces-additional-118-million-in-federal-funding-to-support-texas-higher-education


    A portion of THECB funding will be used to establish the Texas Reskilling Support Fund grant program. This grant program aims to provide essential emergency educational support to students that have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Reskilling grants will be awarded to public institutions of higher education to support displaced Texas workers who need to reskill or upskill to get back into the workforce and to support Texas students who have previously stopped out of higher education institutions without completing a postsecondary credential. to provide essential emergency educational support to students that have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Reskilling grants will be awarded to public institutions of higher education to support displaced Texas workers who need to reskill or upskill to get back into the workforce and to support Texas students who have previously stopped out of higher education institutions without completing a postsecondary credential. More information is available at https://www.highered.texas.gov/institutional-resources-programs/institutional-grant-opportunities/texas-reskilling-support-fund-grant-program/


    A portion of the THECB funding will be used to support the Open Education Resources (OER) Course Development and Implementation Grant. THECB is establishing partnerships with three higher education institutions: OpenStax at Rice University, Dallas College, and the Charles A. Dana Center at The University of Texas at Austin to provide technical assistance guidance for OER Course Development and Implementation applicants and awardees. Grants can be for development (up to $25,000) or implementation (up to $5,000) and must use cross-institutional collaboration. Materials developed/utilized for the grant program will be housed in the Texas OER repository. More information is available at https://www.highered.texas.gov/institutional-resources-programs/institutional-grant-opportunities/open-educational-resources-course-development-and-implementation-grant-program-geer-funded/

    Contacts

    TEA Grants Administration

    TEA Grants Administration

    ,
    (512) 463-8525

    Jordan Hale

    Jordan Hale

    ,
    (512) 936-2160
     

  • Eligibility Details

    State Governors may apply on behalf of their State Education Agency. It is expected that State Education Agencies will then redistribute or regrant awarded funds to Local Education Agencies, Institutions of Higher Education, or other education service providers.


    In Texas GEER funding was distributed through both competitive application process and direct allocations and/or service contracts. Of those funds that were available for competitive grants:

    • The Texas Reskilling Support Fund - An Eligible Applicant (or Applicants) is a Texas public institution of higher education (IHE), including universities, community colleges, state colleges, and technical colleges. An Eligible Applicant is encouraged to partner with one or more public IHEs when applying. Texas public IHEs who are recipients of the Texas Reskilling Support Fund Grant Program's first round of funding are eligible to apply for the second round of funding offered through this RFA.
    • The OER Course Development and Implementation grant program - Public institutions of higher education including universities, community colleges, state colleges, and technical colleges; or Independent institutions of higher education.

    NOTE: A local educational agency receiving funds shall provide equitable services in the same manner as provided under section 1117 of the ESEA of 1965 to students and teachers in non-public schools, as determined in consultation with representatives of non-public schools. However, the control of funds for the services and assistance provided to a non-public school, and title to materials, equipment, and property purchased with such funds, shall be in a public agency, and a public agency shall administer such funds, materials, equipment, and property and shall provide such services (or may contract for the provision of such services with a public or private entity).

    Deadline Details

    In Texas, the majority of GEER funds were automatically distributed to those identified as eligible. Of those funds that were available for competitive grants:

    • The Texas Reskilling Support Fund grant program's deadline was November 12, 2020, and February 1, 2021.
    • The OER Course Development and Implementation grant program has 3 deadlines: November 17, 2020, December 15, 2020, and January 31, 2021.

    This is a one-time emergency funding opportunity. Future deadlines are not anticipated.

    Award Details

    A total of $2,953,230,000 has been allocated for the Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund. The amount awarded to each State is based on the following formula:

    • 60% on the basis of their relative population of individuals aged 5 through 24 as of 2018 census data.
    • 40% on the basis of their relative number of children counted for FY20 under Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (referred to under this heading as ‘‘ESEA'').

    Texas was awarded $307,026,008 on June 2, 2020. Governors shall return to the Secretary any funds that the Governor does not regrant within one year of receiving such funds and the Secretary shall reallocate such funds. Regranted funds under this program remain available for obligation through September 30, 2022.

    Related Webcasts Use the links below to view the recorded playback of these webcasts


    • Funding Classroom Technology to Empower Students and Teachers - Sponsored by Panasonic - Playback Available
    • Maximizing Technology-friendly Workforce Development Grants - Sponsored by Panasonic - Playback Available
    • Funding Data-driven Workforce Development Projects - Sponsored by NetApp - Playback Available

 

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