Office of the State Superintendent of Education
Notice of Funding Availability
Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Act Grants
Request for Applications Release Date: Friday, May 11, 2018, 4:30 p.m.
The Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) will issue Requests for Applications (RFAs) for Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Act grant funds. SOAR Act funds are available to District of Columbia (DC) charter local education agencies (LEAs) and third-party non-profit charter support organizations. The purpose of the funds is to increase the achievement and academic growth of DC public charter school students and to support the improvement and expansion of high-quality public charter schools. This notice provides information regarding two competitive opportunities.
At least $6,000,000 is available through the following competitive funding opportunities:
Grants to Non-Profit Third-Party Charter Support Organizations (Charter Support Grants)
Eligible applicants are non-profit third-party charter school support organizations that have a demonstrated history of success working with DC charter schools on similar projects. Applicants must use funds to support projects designed to have a direct and rapid impact on academic achievement and outcomes for charter school students overall or on the achievement of historically underperforming subgroups. Applicants are required to submit a letter of recommendation from a DC charter school with direct experience working with the organization as well as a complete list of all schools and districts to which the organization has provided similar services. $2,000,000 will be awarded.
Facilities Grants
Eligible applicants are high-quality DC public charter schools. Applicants must use funds to support the renovation of former District of Columbia Public School (or other District-owned) facilities leased from the District or facilities owned by charter schools. Eligible applicants must provide documentation of site control. $4,000,000 will be awarded.
Determinations regarding the number of competitive grant awards will be based on the quality and number of applications received and available funding. Successful applicants may be awarded amounts less than requested.
A review panel or panels will be convened to review, score, and rank each application for a competitive grant. The review panel(s) will be composed of external, neutral, qualified, professional individuals selected for their expertise, knowledge or related experiences. Each application will be scored against a rubric and applications will have multiple reviewers to ensure accurate scoring. Upon completion of its review, the panel(s) shall make recommendations for awards based on the scoring rubric(s). OSSE will make all final award decisions.
To receive more information on these grants, please contact:
Ronda Kardash
Office of the State Superintendent of Education
1050 First Street, NE, Fifth Floor, Washington, D.C. 20002
Email: [email protected]
The RFA for these competitive grant programs will be available on OSSE’s website at osse.dc.gov. All applications will be submitted through the Enterprise Grants Management System (EGMS) at grants.osse.dc.gov.
Related Content: Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Act Grant
