April 7, 2015

Dear Colleagues,

The Oklahoma Teacher Connection (OTC) is pleased to introduce the new 2015-2016 Collegiate Grant application for your consideration. The mission of the Oklahoma Teacher Connection is to recruit, retain and place teachers in Oklahoma schools and these grants help facilitate this process.

This year there are several changes to the RFP, including one new grant category we are excited to offer you. Please read each section very closely and review the new language and terms outlined in the grant. The grant is now in a fillable, online format. Please e-mail the completed grant application to mmichie@osrhe.edu and mail the OTC Collegiate Grant Program Agreement along with the appropriate signatures to the address below by 5:00 pm, June 8, 2015. The mailed agreement should be postmarked by June 8. Use the format provided so that there is consistency among applicants. Any proposal submitted in an incorrect format or containing missing documents will not be considered. No late applications will be accepted.

If you have any questions about the application process, please contact me by e-mail or 405.225.9197. I will be more than happy to assist you. Thank you for helping to fulfill the mission of the Oklahoma Teacher Connection to recruit, retain and place teachers in Oklahoma schools.

Sincerely,

Melissa Michie Coordinator, Oklahoma Teacher Connection Academic Commitment to Education Future Educators Association Leadership, Education, and Achievement Program Collegiate Grants

655 Research Parkway, Suite 200, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73104 Telephone: 405.225.9197

Fax: 405.225.9300

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2015-2016 Oklahoma Teacher Connection

(OTC) Collegiate Grant RFP

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Oklahoma Teacher Connection Collegiate Grant Application

2015-2016 Proposal Reference Information

Applicant Institution/Organization:

Is This A New Project or a Repeat Grant?

Project Title:

Project Director(s):

Address:

City: State: Zip:

Telephone: Cell:

E-Mail:

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2015-2016 Collegiate Grant Application

Collegiate Grant Overview

The Oklahoma Teacher Connection (OTC) annually sponsors programs and grants which help support its objectives to recruit, retain and place teachers in Oklahoma K-12 schools, as well as provide vital interaction among colleges and universities from around the state with students. These grants are ONLY awarded to eligible colleges and universities. Please note the date the application is due: The grant application deadline is 5:00 pm, Monday, June 8, 2015. There will be no late proposals accepted. All grants should be submitted electronically to mmichie@osrhe.edu. This year’s RFP is in a fillable format.

For 2015-2016, five competitive grant categories are offered:

College Connection Grants These are year-long grants which help in the recruitment, retention, and placement efforts of teachers in Oklahoma. The College Connection programs, while focusing on OTC goals and objectives, vary in activity and scope. For instance, funds are used to support pre-collegiate student visitations to colleges of education; visitations of higher education representatives to K-12 schools; student tutoring, leadership, mentoring and college preparation sessions; and professional development for current teachers. Those awarded in this category must show that their activities last throughout the year.

Co-Teaching Model Grant These grants are year-long grants that assist in supporting a co-teaching delivery model for student teaching internships. Cooperating teachers work with pre-service teachers during various field experiences and student teaching internships using the following co-teaching models: parallel teaching, teaming, one teach/one assist, station teaching and one teach/one observe). The teacher education faculty coordinating the grant activities must have been trained previously in the co-teaching model and have a site school that has mentor teachers who are interested in being a cooperating teacher using a co-teaching design. Shortage areas could be a highlighted area in this grant application.

Special Project Grants These grants support “one time” events such as a one or two day conference, workshop, or seminar. These funds provide programs that highlight the teaching profession and place a positive focus on education. Usually, program participants include community leaders, pre-collegiate students, collegiate students, and administrators, as well as educators from all levels.

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Elementary Reading/Early Childhood Literacy Initiative Grants These are year-long grants that will be written very specifically to promote literacy and reading improvement with early childhood or elementary students. The focus of this grant is to help pre-service teachers work with students to achieve positive outcomes in literacy. Partnering schools should meet specific criteria and be defined as Needs Improvement and/or at least 80% of the student body should be participating in the free and reduced lunch program. Special attention should be placed on appropriate, effective literacy materials, reading supplementation or early childhood literacy/elementary lessons and support.

Shortage Areas Grant This is a grant designed to recruit entry level pre-service teachers, para professionals, college students with an undecided major or secondary high school students to teach in specific shortage areas through intense training. According to the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s annual report, the 2015-2016 shortage areas are: science, mathematics, foreign languages, family and consumer sciences, school psychologist, special education, English, social studies, early childhood education, elementary education, school counselor, foreign languages, art, music and physical education/health. The training should encompass a strong emphasis on the participants’ engagement with one or more specific shortage areas, its subject matter and ways to recruit participants into that teaching field. Breakout sessions, panel discussions or lectures by professionals in the shortage area fields could all be considered as effective recruitment methods in this endeavor.

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Application Process

Attached is the electronic application for the Collegiate Grants. Please complete the application in the order it is written, making sure that the grant you select reflects the type of project you are conducting. Any additional attachments should be clearly labeled and placed in the appropriate order as requested in the application. To streamline the process, all applications are to be submitted electronically to: mmichie@osrhe.edu by 5:00 pm, Monday, June 8, 2015. If you need a paper application, please inform OTC and one will be mailed to you.

Depending on whether or not the reviewers recommend funding, and pending budget approval, notifications of grant awards will be made September 2015. The duration of the grants are September 2015 through June 2016. ALL invoices must be submitted by June 1, 2016. Purchase orders will be closed after this date. Please note that grant funds are accessed through reimbursement ONLY, rather than direct allocation. (Reimbursement will be made based upon funds available). If you have any questions regarding the application process, send inquiries to mmichie@osrhe.edu.

If your grant is funded, please contact the OTC coordinator regarding the official dates of your events or meetings throughout the year.

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Oklahoma Teacher Connection Collegiate Grant Application

2015-2016 Proposal Reference Information

Grant Project Selection

The mission of the OTC is to work in the interest of recruiting, retaining, and placing teachers in Oklahoma schools.

For 2015-2016 the OTC will fund activities through request for proposals (RFP). Contingent upon the availability of funds, grant awards will be distributed to institutions of higher education for projects that meet the requirements for one of the areas below.

(Please choose ONE)

COLLEGE CONNECTION 1 Grant Term / $10,000

CO-TEACHING MODEL GRANT 1 Grant Term / $10,000

SPECIAL PROJECT 1-2 Days / $10,000

ELEMENTARY READING/EARLY CHILDHOOD LITERACY 1 Grant Term / $10,000

SHORTAGE AREAS GRANT 1 Grant Term / $10,000

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Key Elements

Please provide a narrative that details the plan of operation for implementing the project. Additionally, if this is a repeat grant please include data results (2-3 pages) from previous years. The length of the proposals should not exceed 15 total pages, and must include the following:

I. STATEMENT OF NEED Fully describe the:

Goal o Objectives Activities

Target Audience o Research Based Need (Please include proof of criteria as noted in the

Shortage Areas and Elementary Reading/Early Childhood Literacy Initiative Grants)

Potential Impact of Project

Must use and follow the actual format of the grant application

II. PROJECT DESIGN Include:

Project Personnel and Responsibilities Ongoing and/or potential partnerships with Local Education Associations (i.e., school districts and school sites) Schedule of Events

o Timeline – (Specific dates and times for project events/ activities) Project Evaluation Plan o Data collection method(s) o Include copies of all evaluations and assessment instruments

Innovative or Powerful Features of the Project Note: If the grant is funded, the grantee agrees to submit an end of the year reflective report showing the impact of the grants, including quantitative and qualitative data. This is due along with the final invoice on June 1, 2016.

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III. BUDGET Provide:

Proposed budget for the project (Amounts are provided on page 4 for each grant). Budget should not exceed allotted amounts and should be adequate for project needs.

Budget narrative - (Ensure that the budget and narrative reflect the timeframe and scope of the project). Line item amounts should be clearly identified. Materials should be described very clearly and must be necessary for the operation of the grant (no gift cards). If stipends are being paid to students or people assisting with the grant, their names and the amount they will receive should be noted. Additionally, the narrative should contain a detailed explanation of monetary compensation, calculation, and justification, as well as, roles and responsibilities of the person(s) listed.

NEW: Percentages listed within your budget. Please list the percentage that each category is allotted.

Example: materials 25%, transportation 20%, speaker 20%, advertising 10%, building usage 20%, stipends or scholarships to students 5%. (This is just an example, not a definite guideline or recommendation).

List of Supplemental or Matching Funding from other Sources (if any)

*** NOTE: Purchase of equipment is not an allowable expense.

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THE SCOPE OF THE OKLAHOMA TEACHER CONNECT GRANT PROJECT

TEACHER ACADEMY To expose high school juniors and/or seniors to careers in teaching by hosting workshops, seminars, and interactive activities that educate about the profession. The academies may occur at any time during the year of the grant award and must engage students in a way that is interesting and educational. Students may be allowed to commute or remain in residence on the campus during this time period.

TEACHER PLACEMENT To facilitate the employment of teachers in urban and hard-to-staff school districts in Oklahoma. Process must include innovative methods to create a systemic model which places the first year teacher in an Oklahoma urban or hard-to-staff district.

TEACHER RECRUITMENT To recruit middle school and high school students into the teaching profession by highlighting the “how to” of application to college and teacher education programs. This can occur during a campus visit, through hosting a series of seminars or workshops that highlight the teaching profession and provide in-depth activities designed to orient them to the field of education. The seminars or workshops should give preference to Academic Commitment to Education (ACE), Future Educators Association (FEA) and/or Leadership, Education and Achievement Program (LEAP) students. A special emphasis in teacher recruitment into shortage areas or low socioeconomic schools can occur during these teacher recruitment visits. Unlike the Teacher Academy, these activities are ongoing throughout the year and involve different schools or groups of students. Other recruitment activities might include projects that involve teacher education personnel and pre-service teachers to target shortage areas and hard-to-staff districts.

TEACHER RETENTION To retain teachers, especially novice teachers (1- 5 years of experience) in urban and hard to staff districts by using innovative methods and processes which may include mentoring activities, motivational speakers, conferences, trainings, seminars/workshops, and research based presentations.

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Report Guidelines

Please use the following guideline to assist you with your OTC Collegiate Grant Report:

Method of Evaluation What evaluation process and/or tool did you use to collect data? How was the data collected among participants (i.e., telephone, computer, email,

mail, separate groups, controlled environment, etc.)? How was data analyzed?

Measured Outcome Is the data collected quantitative or qualitative? What were the specific individual and overall results? (Be sure to include all

statistical information, including the number of racial/ethnic participants, social security numbers and any percentages dealing with the data analysis.)

What direct impact has the program had on participants as it relates to education and project specific goals?

Based on follow-up analysis, what concrete information can be provided on the future goals, future intent or location of each participant?

Provide the number of actual grant participants or those affected by the grant directly or indirectly.

Challenges Were there any setbacks, obstacles or major challenges that delayed or

prevented any of the objectives or activities as noted in the project proposal (i.e., deviations in the timeline)?

What was the major cause of the dilemma? Could it have been prevented? How was this addressed? Are there future plans to prevent this re-occurrence?

Highlights What were some of the highlights or special uplifting moments in the project

where participants were positively impacted? Was there anything that should be replicated and possibly shared with other

institutions of higher education for statewide use? Were there any publications or public media attention for the project?

Project Structure Was there any area in the project outline that was not adequately planned for

(i.e., budget, resources, etc.)?

Feedback Is there additional feedback that is relevant to the overall project goal not

addressed above? (Please include any necessary information.)

Final Reports are Due June 1, 2016

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OKLAHOMA TEACHER CONNECTION 2015-2016 COLLEGIATE GRANT PROGRAM

AGREEMENT

Your institution certifies that the 2015-2016 Collegiate Grant awarded and the program developed for the 2015-2016 academic year will be in compliance with the Oklahoma statutes and other applicable state and federal laws. Your signature indicates that the institution agrees to indemnify the Oklahoma State Regents and/or the Chancellor for any liability they may incur as a result of the institution’s selection of participants for its 2015-2016 grant year. Your institution agrees to furnish to the State Regents’ office any information related to this program that may be requested. Such information will include, but not necessarily be limited to, the following:

• Submit final invoice(s) with receipts and documentation detailing revenuesand expenditures. If the project is completed prior to summer 2016, submitinvoices within two weeks of completion.

• Written Report including items as detailed in the report guidelines(See Page 11 of RFP)

• Submit both invoices and written reports by June 1, 2016. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education agree to make funds available in the following manner: Once the grant contract and budget has been received and approved as well as any other information requested by Regents’ staff, the funds will be disbursed on a reimbursement basis as invoices are received.

PRESIDENT’S SIGNATURE:

DEAN’S SIGNATURE:

GRANT DIRECTOR’S SIGNATURE:

DATE:

WE AGREE TO THE GRANT TERMS AND WILL CONDUCT THIS COLLEGIATE GRANT LAWFULLY AND UNDER THE TERMS INDICATED ABOVE.

Please return this form by June 8, 2015 to:

Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education Melissa Michie, OTC Coordinator 655 Research Parkway, Suite 200 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73104

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