Arkansas Department of Education Division of Elementary and Secondary Education 2023-2024 Affirmation of Consultation with Private Schools Form & Webinar

Memo Information

Memo Number
COM-23-082
Memo Date
2/25/2023
Memo Type
Informational
Unit
Public School Accountability
Regulatory Authority
Response Required
NO
Attention
Assistant Superintendent; Bookkeepers; Federal Programs; General Business Managers; Superintendents

Primary Contact Information

Secondary Contact/s Information

Memo Text

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), requires a participating Local Educational Agency (LEA) to provide eligible children attending private elementary and secondary schools, their teachers, and their families with services or other benefits that are equitable. Under ESEA Section 1117, the written Affirmation of Consultation is required. The Affirmation serves dual purpose in the following ways: 1) as documentation of participating and non-participating schools and 2) it assures the State Education Agency (SEA) that the Local Education Agency (LEA) has contacted the private schools in their attendance area and proves meaningful, timely consultation has taken place. All districts must upload a copy of the Affirmation of Consultation form into Indistar in the 2023-2024 Form Uploads Folder by May 1, 2023. 

 

Each LEA shall maintain in their records an Affirmation of Consultation form signed and dated by the private schools and public-school officials that verifies that the required consultation has occurred. If the private school officials and the LEA have not completed or finalized their consultation process by the above date, the district must retain documentation in their onsite files to show at least three (3) good faith attempts were made to contact the private school officials.

 

Webinar

DESE will host a webinar on March 15, 2023, at 1:00 PM for any LEA or private school official to attend. This webinar will give an overview of Equitable Services and will discuss topics that include who is eligible for equitable services, the consultation process, how allocations are calculated, and how equitable services funds can be used.

When: Mar 15, 2023, 01:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Topic: Equitable Services Overview: School Year 2023-2024

Please click the link below to join the webinar:

https://zoom.us/j/96206896225?pwd=czR0WXZRL0R3QlNSUEpUVEpIN2lUdz09

Passcode: 369270

Or One tap mobile :

    US: +17193594580,,96206896225#  or +12532050468,,96206896225#

Webinar ID: 962 0689 6225

  

Resources:

  •  2023-2024 Affirmation of Consultation with Private Schools Form. A form needs to be uploaded for each private school in an LEA’s attendance zone, as well as any other private schools that the LEA believes has students that reside in the LEA’s attendance zone but attend those schools. All districts must upload a copy of the Affirmation of Consultation form into Indistar in the 2023-2024 Form Uploads by May 1, 2023. 
  • ADE Affirmation of Consultation Information Sheet. LEAs can give this to private school officials to help explain each Title program and provide information on who is eligible for each program.
  • ADE Equitable Services FAQs. This document includes frequently asked questions by LEAs and private school officials about equitable services that can help guide both through the consultation process throughout the year.
  • ADE List of Known Arkansas Private Schools by County. LEAs may use this list to help determine which schools they need to contact. If an LEA knows of any private school in their attendance zone that is not on the list, please contact the Equitable Services Program Advisor, April Jarvis. This list will be updated annually.

 

Non-Regulatory Guidance: Equitable Services

Under the Congressional Review Act, Congress passed, the President signed, and a resolution of regulations was published on November 29, 2016; however, the updated non-regulatory guidance (October 7, 2019) document regarding equitable services is now applicable. This updated non-regulatory guidance (October 7, 2019) supersedes the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) guidance entitled: Title I Services to Eligible Private School Children, Non-Regulatory Guidance (October 17, 2003); Ensuring Equitable Services to Private School Children: A Title I Resource Tool Kit (September 2006); and the equitable services guidance contained in Non-Regulatory Guidance: Fiscal Changes and Equitable Services Requirements under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as Amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) (November 21, 2016).

The 2019 guidance document only addresses Title I equitable services to eligible private school children, their teachers, and their families. The ESEA also includes other programs that require State educational agencies (SEAs) and LEAs to provide for the equitable participation of eligible private school students and their teachers and other educational personnel, including those programs governed by the Title VIII, Part F, Uniform Provisions, which the Department will address in separate updated guidance. The Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as Amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act: Providing Equitable Services to Eligible Private School Children, Teachers, and Families Updated Non-Regulatory Guidance (October 7, 2019) can be found at: https://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/non-public -education/files/equitable-services-guidance-100419.pdf

The Department made draft updates to three questions—A-9, B-11, and B-13—and has added a new draft question B-11a. To make it easier to see what has been added or amended, all changes are highlighted in yellow in the following document. The draft updates focus on requirements concerning consultation and extrapolation of survey data. The purpose of the updates is to share information about these requirements to support implementation. The updated guidance can be found at:https://oese.ed.gov/files/2022/11/Title-I-equitable-services-guidance-revised-for-public-comment-11-9-2022.pdf

The U.S. Department of Education has also released the Draft Title VIII, Part F of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as Amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act: Providing Equitable Services to Eligible Private School Children, Teachers and Families – NonRegulatory Guidance (2022) for  public comment on March 30, 2022.  In the Department’s responsibility to administer the programs authorized by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) for eligible children and teachers, the ESEA Title VIII equitable services guidance provides state educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), and other eligible entities with critical information that will assist them in meeting their obligations to ensure the equitable participation of private school children in ESEA programs.  The guidance addresses a longstanding request from State and local federal program officers, ESEA state ombudsmen, and private school officials to provide clarification and consolidate guidance for all programs governed by the ESEA Title VIII equitable services provisions.  

 

The following staff member should be contacted regarding guidance on Equitable Services:

·      Program Advisor – April Jarvis,  april.jarvis@ade.arkansas.gov, 501-682-4373.

More information is available on the DESE Federal Programs Private School webpage.

 

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