USDE Funding Waiver

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) would like to request that the United States Department of Education (USDE) extend the duration of a subgrant to a local educational agency (LEA) under section 1003 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) from four to five years. Under the Section 1003(c) of the ESEA, a state education agency (SEA, TEA in Texas) may award Section 1003 funds to an LEA to support an identified school for up to four years. However, due to the impacts of COVID-19 some Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI), Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI), and Additional Targeted Support Identification (ATSI) schools currently in their fourth year of the subgrant period will need additional time to implement school improvement interventions. 

Consequently, Texas would like to request a waiver to extend the allowable duration of the subgrant period from four to five years for LEAs with schools that were implementing ESEA Section 1003 subgrants in the school year 2020-2021. TEA estimates that this applies to approximately 209 Texas schools.

TEA is seeking input from a diverse group of stakeholders to ensure that this request is responsive to the needs of students, families, and educators across the state. 

Please submit any feedback via our Stakeholder Engagement Survey by 5:00 p.m. on May 5, 2022, so they may be reviewed prior to inclusion in the state’s USDE Funding Waiver.

Contact

For support or additional information on submitting your input, please contact the Division of School Improvement at SIdivision@tea.texas.gov.

Sincerely,

Deniann Grant, Interim Director of School Improvement
District Systems and Strategies Division