The Oklahoma Public School Resource Center (OPSRC) has received a USDE competitive grant (view the press release here) to carry out the following objectives within Oklahoma:
OPSRC will award subgrants for brick-and-mortar charter schools in the following two categories:
Awarded subgrants of $900,000 will be funded with $250,000 in the Planning Year (up to 16 months) and $650,000 in the Implementation Year.
Grant applicants must conform to the federal definition of a public charter school in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act [P.L. 114-95, section 4310(2)] to be eligible for grant funds under the CSP.
Virtual charter schools are not eligible to apply.
All applicants for the Charter School Program grant must have an executed charter with a sponsor and must be no more than 16 months from opening as of the due date of the subgrant.
Charter schools in operation, approved charter schools that are more than 16 months from opening and developers that have not yet been approved by a sponsor are not eligible to apply. Grant activities may not extend beyond the first year of operation.
Those who wish to expand or replicate existing charter schools must meet the ESSA SEC. 4310 (7-9) definitions of expanding, replicating and high quality. Schools that do not meet this definition are not eligible for subgrant funding.
Each application will consist of:
The application must have a solid foundation and infrastructure that will ensure the charter is prepared for success from the beginning. That is, school leaders and stakeholders must display active engagement from the outset, from the planning operations to governing board development. The applicants must demonstrate an emphasis on community support as required by the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act. A plan for financial sustainability is also crucial and must be at the core of the charter school’s application. Further, the management plan must reflect the autonomy afforded to the charter school and must demonstrate how the school will comply with all applicable regulations.
Competitive priority preference will be given to those applicants who seek to create a brick-and-mortar charter school for students who are educationally disadvantaged, including the following: 1) students with disabilities and English language learners, 2) underserved minority student subgroups (African American, Native American, Hispanic) and 3) students residing in poverty-stricken areas.
Disposition. When original or replacement equipment acquired under a Federal award is no longer needed for the original project or program or for other activities currently or previously supported by a Federal awarding agency, except as otherwise provided in Federal statutes, regulations, or Federal awarding agency disposition instructions, the non-Federal entity must request disposition instructions from the Federal awarding agency if required by the terms and conditions of the Federal award. Disposition of the equipment will be made as follows, in accordance with Federal awarding agency disposition instructions:
(1) Items of equipment with a current per unit fair market value of $5,000 or less may be retained, sold or otherwise disposed of with no further responsibility to the Federal awarding agency.
(2) Except as provided in § 200.312(b), or if the Federal awarding agency fails to provide requested disposition instructions within 120 days, items of equipment with a current per-unit fair market value in excess of $5,000 may be retained by the non-Federal entity or sold. The Federal awarding agency is entitled to an amount calculated by multiplying the current market value or proceeds from sale by the Federal awarding agency's percentage of participation in the cost of the original purchase. If the equipment is sold, the Federal awarding agency may permit the non-Federal entity to deduct and retain from the Federal share $500 or ten percent of the proceeds, whichever is less, for its selling and handling expenses.
(3) The non-Federal entity may transfer title to the property to the Federal Government or to an eligible third party provided that, in such cases, the non-Federal entity must be entitled to compensation for its attributable percentage of the current fair market value of the property.
(4) In cases where a non-Federal entity fails to take appropriate disposition actions, the Federal awarding agency may direct the non-Federal entity to take disposition actions.
Applications for 2023 are now available and due on March 31, 2023
We have developed a course in our Learning Management System to introduce the application, if you need access email eric.doss@opsrc.net.
Question and Answer sessions will be conducted virtually on:
Email eric.doss@opsrc.net for registration.
OPSRC will regularly post information about the grant, on this webpage.
