Memo Text
The Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) requests applications for Successful Outcomes for Arkansas Readers (SOAR) Grants for K-12 schools and/or districts. Eligible entities are organizations categorized as a Local Education Agency (LEA). Priority for grant funds will be given to districts having more than 40% of students scoring “in need of support” on state assessments or are identified as needing targeted support for special education or English learners. Application materials are linked below and can be found on the Arkansas CLSD webpage, and SOAR Grant Instructions can be found here.
Applications should support the three goals of RISE: 1) Sharpen the focus and strength instruction; 2) Create community collaboration; and 3) Build a culture of reading.
Identified Priority Areas for Funding:
- High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM)
- High-Quality Professional Learning opportunities that align to HQIM and address deficit areas
- Supports for subpopulations (students in foster care and/or special education, English Learners, students identified as low socio-economic, migrant, and/or dyslexic)
- Access to grade-level texts
- Curriculum resources to support Academic Reading, Critical Reading, and Strategic Reading Courses at middle and secondary levels.
Arkansas SOAR Grant applications should submit the following documents:
Completed SOAR Grant Application
Completed FY23 Grants Budget and Narrative
Completed FY24 Grants Budget and Narrative
For technical assistance, please contact Brooke Butler at brooke.butler@ade.arkansas.gov. To apply, please submit an electronic copy of the application to ArkansasCLSDGrant@ade.arkansas.gov.
Deadline to apply for priority consideration: Friday, February 17, 2023