DEPARTMENT: Pre-K 4 SA
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Sarah Baray, Ph.D.
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Citywide
SUBJECT:
Competitive Grants Approval
SUMMARY:
This item includes a staff briefing and Board consideration of the entities receiving awards from the Pre-K 4 SA Competitive Grants Program with a cumulative value of up to $4.3 million.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Pre-K 4 SA competitive grants were approved during the original vote in 2012. The vision for these grants was to provide additional full-day and/or enhanced prekindergarten services in existing programs for 1,700 students per year. The RFP for the Competitive Education Grants for Pre-K Four Programs was released on September 18, 2017 and responses were due on October 27, 2017. A total of 44 entities submitted applications to be considered for grant funding.
The Pre-K 4 SA Board of Directors conducted a work session on February 28, 2018 to discuss grant proposals.
ISSUE:
To achieve the goal of increasing access to quality prekindergarten programs, Pre-K 4 SA's competitive grants will fund projects to expand or enhance educational opportunities for four-year-olds in San Antonio, especially programs that target underserved students. Funding will be distributed among four groups: 1) public and charter schools, 2) private and parochial schools, 3) child development centers (accredited), and (4) child development centers (unaccredited).
In order to award funding in these four categories, Pre-K 4 SA conducted a multi-stage evaluation process to review, score, and recommend applicants for funding:
1) Evaluation Committees: Four committees of education experts and community leaders were assembled to score proposals in the public/charter, private/parochial, and child development center categories.
2) Interviews: Interviews were conducted with the finalists that were recommended by the evaluation committees.
3) Site visits: To address any remaining questions following the interview process,...
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