Honorable Linda McCulloch

State Superintendent of Public Instruction

Montana Office of Public Instruction

1227 11^th^ Avenue

Helena, Montana 59620-2501

Dear Superintendent McCulloch:

During the week of June 4-8, 2007, a team from the U. S. Department of
Education's (ED) Student Achievement and School Accountability Programs
(SASA) office reviewed the Montana Office of Public Instruction's (OPI)
administration of the following programs authorized by the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child
Left Behind Act (NCLB):

-   Title I, Part A (Basic);

-   Title I, Part B, Subpart 3 (Even Start);

-   Title I, Part D (Neglected and Delinquent); and

-   Title VII, Subtitle B, of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
    (Education for Homeless Children and Youth).

Enclosed is a report based upon this review.

The 2006-2007 fiscal year begins the second full cycle of monitoring for
these requirements under NCLB. Based on three years of monitoring, we
have learned significantly more about the status of states, districts,
and schools in implementing the requirements of Title I. For the first
time, ED has collected data on critical compliance issues under NCLB in
[all]{.underline} States. This knowledge has informed the current cycle
of monitoring, and is reflected in the procedures and monitoring
protocols utilized in the onsite review process.

The ESEA, as reauthorized as NCLB, has increased the emphasis on
accountability for [all]{.underline} students, and focused on States'
responsibilities to work with districts and schools to improve
instruction and student achievement. ED will continue to work closely
with States to define their responsibilities in implementing the
requirements of NCLB.

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Monitoring for the Title I, Part A; Even Start; Neglected or Delinquent;
and Homeless Education programs will continue to be conducted in three
broad areas -- accountability; program improvement, parental involvement
and options; and fiduciary responsibilities. Prior to, during, and
following the onsite monitoring review, the ED team conducted a

number of activities (described in the enclosed report) to verify
compliance with the critical monitoring indicators in each of the three
broad areas for all four programs.

The enclosed report contains a listing of the critical monitoring
elements in each of the three areas for the four programs monitored, a
description of the scope of the monitoring review, and the findings,
required corrective actions and recommendations that the ED team cited
as a result of the review. Each State that participates in an onsite
monitoring review and that has significant compliance findings in one or
more of the programs monitored will have a condition placed on that
program's grant award specifying that the State must submit (and receive
approval of) documentation that [all]{.underline} compliance issues
identified in the monitoring report have been corrected. Following an
onsite review, ED will issue a draft monitoring report within 35
business days of the team's return. The State educational agency (SEA)
then has five days to review the report and provide technical comments,
before the report is issued in final. Following the issuance of the
final report, the SEA then has 30 business days to respond to all of the
compliance issues identified in that report.

ED staff will review the SEA's response for sufficiency and will
determine which areas are acceptable and which will require further
documentation of implementation. ED will allow 30 business days for
receipt of this further documentation, if required. ED recognizes that
some corrective actions may require longer than the prescribed 30 days,
and in these instances, ED will work with the SEA to determine a
reasonable timeline. When the SEA believes that additional time is
required to implement specific corrective actions, it must submit a
request for such an extension in writing to ED, including a timeline for
completion of all related actions. In all cases, however, evidence of
implementation of actions designed to correct [all]{.underline}
compliance issues identified in the monitoring report must be submitted
and approved by ED prior to removing the condition on the State's grant
award(s).

Please be aware that the issues presented in the enclosed report reflect
the status of compliance in Montana at the time of SASA's onsite review.
The SEA may receive further communication from ED that will require you
to address noncompliance occurring prior or subsequent to the onsite
visit.

The ED team would like to thank B.J. Granbery and her staff for their
hard work and the assistance they provided prior to and during the
review in gathering materials and providing access to information in a
timely manner. The ED team was impressed with the efforts of your
State's staff to implement the many requirements of the four programs
monitored.

Page 3 -- Honorable Linda McCulloch

We look forward to working further with your staff members to resolve
the issues contained in this report and to improve the quality Title I
programs in Montana.

Sincerely,

Zollie Stevenson, Jr., Ph.D.

Acting Director

Student Achievement and

> School Accountability Programs

Enclosure

cc: B.J. Granbery, State Title I Director