Department of Education

INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request

CONTENTS

Page

Appropriations Language.............................................................................................................. 1

Analysis of Language Provisions and Changes............................................................................ 3

Appropriation, Adjustments, and Transfers................................................................................... 5

Summary of Changes ................................................................................................................... 6

Authorizing Legislation.................................................................................................................. 8

Appropriations History................................................................................................................... 9

Significant Items in FY 2022 Appropriations Reports ................................................................. 11

Summary of Request ..................................................................................................................15

Activities: 

Education innovation and research ........................................................................................17

Teacher and school leader incentive grants...........................................................................25

American history and civics education ...................................................................................31

Supporting effective educator development ...........................................................................36

Charter schools grants ...........................................................................................................40

Magnet schools assistance ....................................................................................................48

Ready to learn programming ..................................................................................................53

Arts in education.....................................................................................................................58

Javits gifted and talented education .......................................................................................64

Statewide family engagement centers....................................................................................69

School leader recruitment and support...................................................................................74

Fostering diverse schools.......................................................................................................77

Account Summary Table.............................................................................................................81
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

1 

Appropriations Language

For carrying out activities authorized by subparts 1, 3, and 4 of part B of title II, and parts 

C, D, and E, and subparts 1 and 4 of part F of title IV of the ESEA, [$1,253,000,000] 

$1,504,000,000: Provided, That [$286,000,000] $406,000,000 shall be for subparts 1, 3, and 4 

of part B of title II and shall be made available without regard to sections 2201, 2231(b) and 

2241:1 Provided further, That, of the funds available for subpart 3 of part B of title II, 

$50,000,000 shall be for grants to local educational agencies, State educational agencies, or 

institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations in partnership with one or more local 

educational agencies or a State educational agency, to improve student understanding of civics 

through participatory learning and engagement:

2 Provided further, That [$683,000,000] 

$693,000,000 shall be for parts C, D, and E and subpart 4 of part F of title IV, and shall be made 

available without regard to sections 4311, 4409(a), 4506, and 4601 of the ESEA:

3 Provided 

further, That section 4303(d)(3)(A)(i) shall not apply to the funds available for part C of title IV:4

Provided further, That of the funds available for part C of title IV, the Secretary shall use not less 

than [$60,000,000 to carry out section 4304, of which not more than $10,000,000 shall be 

available to carry out section 4304(k), $140,000,000, to remain available through March 31, 

2024, to carry out section 4305(b), and not more than $16,000,000 to carry out the activities in 

section 4305(a)(3)] $330,000,000 to carry out sections 4303, 4305(a)(2), and 4305(b):

5 Provided 

further, That the funds for section 4305(b) shall remain available through March 31, 2025:

6

Provided further, That none of the funds available for part C of title IV may be used by the 

Secretary to make new awards that support any charter school, whether as a grantee or 

subgrantee or otherwise as a recipient of financing or other financial assistance, that is operated 

or managed by a for-profit education management organization or other similar for-profit entity, 

including through a contract with such an organization or entity, except that this proviso does 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Appropriations Language—continued 

2 

not limit the ability of a charter school to contract with a for-profit entity for discrete purposes 

other than managing or operating the charter school, such as providing food services or payroll 

services:

7 Provided further, That notwithstanding section 4601(b), [$284,000,000] $405,000,000

shall be available through December 31, [2023] 2024, for subpart 1 of part F of title IV8[:

Provided further, That of the funds available for subpart 4 of part F of title IV, not less than 

$8,000,000 shall be used for continuation grants for eligible national nonprofit organizations, as 

described in the Applications for New Awards; Assistance for Arts Education Program published 

in the Federal Register on May 31, 2022, for activities described under section 4642(a)(1)(C)].9

(Department of Education Appropriations Act, 2023.) 

NOTE

Each language provision that is followed by a footnote reference is explained in the Analysis of Language 

Provisions and Changes document, which follows the appropriations language.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

3 

Analysis of Language Provisions and Changes

Language Provision Explanation

1Provided, That [$286,000,000] 

$406,000,000 shall be for subparts 1, 3, and 

4 of part B of title II and shall be made 

available without regard to sections 2201, 

2231(b) and 2241:

This language provides funding for Teacher 

and School Leader Incentive Grants, 

American History and Civics Education, 

Supporting Effective Educator Development, 

and School Leader Recruitment and Support 

without regard to the sections of the ESEA 

that specify the distribution of funds 

appropriated under title II of the ESEA. 

2 Provided further, That, of the funds 

available for subpart 3 of part B of title II, 

$50,000,000 shall be for grants to local 

educational agencies, State educational 

agencies, or institutions of higher education 

or nonprofit organizations in partnership with 

one or more local educational agencies or a 

State educational agency, to improve student 

understanding of civics through participatory 

learning and engagement: 

This language authorizes funding within 

American History and Civics Education for 

grants to local educational agencies, State 

educational agencies, and partnerships of 

these agencies with institutions of higher 

education and nonprofit organizations to 

improve student understanding of civics 

through participatory learning and 

engagement. 

3Provided further, That [$683,000,000] 

$693,000,000 shall be for parts C, D, and E 

and subpart 4 of part F of title IV, and shall 

be made available without regard to sections 

4311, 4409(a), 4506, and 4601 of the ESEA: 

This language provides funds for Charter 

Schools Grants, Magnet Schools Assistance, 

Ready to Learn Programming, Arts in 

Education, Javits Gifted and Talented 

Education, and Statewide Family 

Engagement Centers without regard to the 

sections of the ESEA that specify the 

distribution of funds appropriated under title 

IV of the ESEA. 

4 Provided further, That section 

4303(d)(3)(A)(i) shall not apply to the funds 

available for part C of title IV:

This language overrides the statutory 

provision under the Charter Schools Grants 

program that requires the Department to 

award at least 3 grants to State entities and 

to frontload funding for year 2 of those 

awards. 

5 Provided further, That of the funds available 

for part C of title IV, the Secretary shall use 

not less than [$60,000,000 to carry out 

section 4304, of which not more than 

$10,000,000 shall be available to carry out 

section 4304(k), $140,000,000, to remain 

available through March 31, 2024, to carry 

This language establishes, within the Charter 

Schools Grants appropriation, a minimum 

funding amount for State Entity, Developer, 

and Charter Management Organization 

grants combined. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Analysis of Language Provisions and Changes—continued 

4 

Language Provision Explanation

out section 4305(b), and not more than 

$16,000,000 to carry out the activities in 

section 4305(a)(3)] $330,000,000 to carry out 

sections 4303, 4305(a)(2), and 4305(b):

6Provided further, That the funds provided for 

section 4305(b) shall remain available until 

March 31, 2025:

This language extends the period of 

availability 6 months beyond the end of the 

appropriation year for the funds for Charter 

Management Organization grants. 

7 Provided further, That none of the funds 

available for part C of title IV may be used by 

the Secretary to make new awards that 

support any charter school, whether as a 

grantee or subgrantee or otherwise as a 

recipient of financing or other financial 

assistance, that is operated or managed by a 

for-profit education management 

organization or other similar for-profit entity, 

including through a contract with such an 

organization or entity, except that this proviso 

does not limit the ability of a charter school to 

contract with a for-profit entity for discrete 

purposes other than managing or operating 

the charter school, such as providing food 

services or payroll services: 

This language prohibits the Secretary from 

making new awards under Charter Schools 

Grants that support charter schools that are 

operated or managed by for-profit entities, 

including through contractual relationships. 

The language also clarifies that charter 

schools receiving program support may 

contract with for-profit entities for purposes 

other than operating or managing the school.

8 Provided further, That notwithstanding 

section 4601(b), [$284,000,000] 

$405,000,000 shall be available through 

December 31, [2023] 2024, for subpart 1 of 

part F of title IV:

This language provides a specific funding 

amount for Education Innovation and 

Research overriding the authorized level. It 

also extends the period of Federal availability 

3 months beyond the year of appropriation.

9 [Provided further, That of the funds available 

for subpart 4 of part F of title IV, not less than 

$8,000,000 shall be used for continuation 

grants for eligible national nonprofit 

organizations, as described in the 

Applications for New Awards; Assistance for 

Arts Education Program published in the 

Federal Register on May 31, 2022, for 

activities described under section 

4642(a)(1)(C)].

This language provides, within the Arts in 

Education appropriation, a minimum funding 

amount for continuation awards under the 

Assistance for Arts Education Program—Arts 

in Education National Program. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

5

Appropriation, Adjustments, and Transfers

(dollars in thousands)

Appropriation/Adjustments/Transfers 2022 2023 2024

Discretionary:

Discretionary Appropriation $1,300,730 $1,453,443 $1,604,000

Total, discretionary appropriation 1,300,730 1,453,443 1,604,000
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

6 

Summary of Changes

(dollars in thousands)

2023 $1,453,443

2024 1,604,000

Net change +150,557

Increases: 2023 base

Change

from base

Program: 

Increase funding for Education Innovation and Research 

to support the creation, development, implementation, 

replication, and scaling up of evidence-based innovations 

to improve achievement and attainment for underserved 

students. $284,000 +$121,000

Increase funding for Teacher and School Leader Incentive 

Grants to help eligible entities develop, implement, 

improve, or expand human capital management systems 

or performance-based compensation systems in schools 

served by those entities 173,000 +27,000

Increase funding for American History and Civics 

Education to improve the quality of teaching and learning 

in American history, civics, and government. 23,000 +50,000

Increase funding for Supporting Effective Educator 

Development to provide professional development and 

other support to teachers, principals, or other school 

leaders. 90,000 +3,000

Increase funding for Magnet Schools Assistance to 

support local educational agencies in the desegregation of 

schools by establishing and operating magnet schools that 

offer special curricula or instructional programs that 

appeal to students from diverse backgrounds. 139,000 +10,000

Provide funding for School Leader Recruitment and 

Support to improve the recruitment, preparation, 

placement, support, and retention of effective principals or 

other school leaders in high-need schools. 0 +40,000
G. INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

H. Summary of Changes—continued 

7 

Provide funding for the proposed Fostering Diverse 

Schools program to support the development and 

implementation of comprehensive plans by local 

educational agencies to increase school diversity in 

preschool through grade 12. 0 +$100,000

Subtotal, increases +351,000

Decreases: 2023 base

Change 

from base

Program:

Decrease funding for Community Project 

Funding/Congressionally Directed Spending. $200,443 -$200,443

Subtotal, decreases -200,443

Net change +150,557
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

88 

Authorizing Legislation

(dollars in thousands)

Activity

2023

Authorizedfootnote

2023

Appropriation footnote

2024

Authorizedfootnote

2024

Request

Education innovation and research (ESEA IV-F-1) 0 $284,000 To be determined1 $405,000

Teacher and school leader incentive grants 

(ESEA II-B-1) 0 173,000 To de determined1 200,000

American history and civics education (ESEA II-B-3) 0 23,000 To be determined1 73,000

Supporting effective educator development (SEED) 

(ESEA II-B-4, section 2242) 0 90,000 To be determined1 93,000

Charter schools grants (ESEA IV-C) 0 440,000 To be determined1 440,000

Magnet schools assistance (ESEA IV-D) 0 139,000 To be determined1 149,000

Ready to learn programming (ESEA IV-F-4, 

section 4643) 0 31,000 To be determined1 31,000

Arts in education (ESEA IV-F-4, section 4642) 0 36,500 To be determined1 36,500

Javits gifted and talented education (ESEA IV-F-4, 

section 4644) 0 16,500 To be determined1 16,500

Statewide family engagement centers (ESEA IV-E) 0 20,000 To be determined1 20,000

School leader recruitment and support (ESEA II-B-4, 

section 2243) 0 0 To be determined1 40,000

Fostering diverse schools (proposed legislation) 0 0 To be determined2 100,000

Community project funding/Congressionally directed 

spending 0 200,443 0 0

Total definite authorization 0 To be determined

Total appropriation 1,453,443 1,604,000

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization for fiscal year 2024 is expected through appropriations action. 2 Authorizing legislation is sought for fiscal year 2024. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

9

Appropriations History

(dollars in thousands)

Year

Budget 

Estimate 

to Congress

House 

Allowance Footnote

Senate 

Allowance Footnote Appropriation

Foot

note

2015 Discretionary1 $5,335,000 N/A $868,721 $852,111

2015 Mandatory2 5,000,000 N/A 0 0

2016 Discretionary3 1,601,559 $275,000 694,616 1,181,226

2016 Mandatory4 1,000,000 0 0 0

2017 Discretionary5 1,411,556 632,938 942,743 887,575

2017 Mandatory6 4,299,982 0 0 0

2018 Discretionary7 1,208,026 757,904 880,375 982,256

2019 Discretionary8 1,777,647 1,058,441 1,042,256 1,035,556

2020 Discretionary9 1,107,000 1,224,315 1,055,556 1,103,815

2021 Discretionary10 0 1,076,315 1,085,815 1,114,250

2022 Discretionary11 1,284,250 1,385,286 1,355,585 1,300,730

2022 Mandatory12 1,800,000 0 0 0

1 The House allowance is shown as N/A because there was no Subcommittee action. The level for the Senate 

allowance reflects Senate Subcommittee action only.

2 The House allowance is shown as N/A because there was no Subcommittee action. The level for the Senate 

allowance reflects Senate Subcommittee action only.

3 The levels for the House and Senate allowances reflect action on the regular annual 2016 appropriations bill, which 

proceeded in the 114th Congress only through the House Committee and Senate Committee.

4 The levels for the House and Senate allowances reflect action on the regular annual 2016 appropriations bill, which 

proceeded in the 114th Congress only through the House Committee and Senate Committee.

5 The levels for the House and Senate allowances reflect Committee action on the regular annual 2017 appropriation 

bill; the Appropriation reflects the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017. 6 The levels for the House and Senate allowances reflect Committee action on the regular annual 2017 appropriation 

bill; the Appropriation reflects the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017. 7 The level for the House allowance reflects floor action on the Omnibus appropriations bill; the Senate allowance 

reflects Committee action on the regular annual 2018 appropriations bill; the Appropriation reflects the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act, 2018 (P.L. 115-141). 8 The levels for the House and Senate allowance reflect Committee action on the regular annual 2019 appropriations 

bill; the Appropriation reflects enactment of the Department of Defense and Labor, Health and Human Services, and 

Education Appropriations Act, 2019 (P.L. 115-245). 9 The Senate allowance reflects the Chairman’s mark; the Appropriation reflects the Further Consolidated 

Appropriation Act, 2020 (P.L. 116-94). 10 The level for the House allowance reflects subcommittee action. The level for the Senate allowance reflects the 

Chairman’s mark; the Appropriation reflects Division H of the FY 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 116-

260).

11 The House allowance reflects floor action on the FY 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act; the Senate allowance 

reflects the Chairman’s mark; and the Appropriation reflects Division H or the FY 2022 Consolidated Appropriations 

Act (P.L. 117-103). 12 The House allowance reflects floor action; the Senate allowance reflects the Chair’s mark; and the Appropriation 

reflects Division H or the FY 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 117-103).
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Appropriations History—continued

10

Year

Budget 

Estimate 

to Congress

House 

Allowance Footnote

Senate 

Allowance Footnote Appropriation

Foot

note

2023 Discretionary1 $1,572,000 $1,484,608 $1,361,764 $1,453,443

2024 Discretionary 1,604,000

1 The House allowance reflects the regular annual FY 2023 appropriation, which was introduced on the floor; the 

Senate allowance reflects the Chairman’s mark; and the Appropriation reflects the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 

2023 (P.L. 117-328).
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

11

Significant Items in FY 2023 Appropriations Reports

Education Innovation and Research (EIR) 

House: The Committee requests a briefing within 90 days of enactment of this Act on 

plans for carrying out the SEL competition. In addition, the Department shall 

provide notice and a briefing to the Committees at least seven days before 

grantees are announced.

Omnibus: No later than 30 days after enactment of this Act, the Department is directed to 

have an initial consultation briefing with the Committees on the fiscal year 2023 

competitions for EIR. Not less than two weeks before the publication of a notice 

of proposed priorities or a notice inviting applications, the Department is directed 

to brief the Committees on plans for carrying out an EIR competition. In addition, 

the Department shall provide a briefing and notice of grant awards to the 

Committees at least seven days before grantees are announced.

Response: The Department has provided an initial consultation briefing on the EIR 

competition and will provide an additional briefing on the competition and a 

briefing on grant awards as requested in the Omnibus report, which supersedes 

the House report. 

American History and Civics Education

House: The Committee directs the Department to run a new competition in fiscal year 

2023 for grants supporting evidence-based practices proven to contribute to the 

effectiveness of educational programs in civics, including innovative and 

engaging classroom instruction in civics, government, and history; community 

service linked to classroom learning; learning through participation in models and 

simulations of democratic processes; meaningful participation in school 

governance; and instruction in media literacy through the study of common 

informal fallacies in logic. The Department is directed to prioritize grants that 

support traditionally underserved communities, including students from lowincome urban and rural school districts, English learners, and students with 

disabilities. Eligible entities shall include LEAs, SEAs, and consortia of LEAs. 

Omnibus: After providing continuation awards, the agreement directs the Department to 

allocate all remaining resources for American History and Civics National 

Activities to run a new grant competition supporting evidence-based practices as 

described under this heading in the House Report; however, eligible entities shall 

be those defined in section 2233(e) of ESEA. The Department also is directed to 

include a priority for applicants that propose evidence-based approaches to 

improving teaching and learning about the history and principles of the 

Constitution of the United States in any new competition.

Response: The Department is complying with these directives, but notes that the portion of 

the House directive relating to eligible entities is overridden by the joint 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Significant Items in FY 2023 Appropriations Reports—continued

12

explanatory statement and could not have been accommodated without 

appropriations language.

Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED)

House: The Committee continues to support the SEL competitive preference priority 

within the SEED competition. The priority supports professional development that 

helps educators incorporate SEL practices into teaching and supports pathways 

into teaching that provide a strong foundation in child development and learning, 

including skills for implementing SEL strategies in the classroom. The Committee 

directs the Department to include the competitive preference priority in any new 

SEED competition in fiscal year 2023.

If the Department issues a new notice inviting application for fiscal year 2023, the 

Committee requests a briefing within 90 days of enactment of this Act on plans 

for carrying out the SEL competitive preference priority in SEED. In addition, the 

Department shall provide notice and a briefing to the Committees at least seven 

days before grantees for a new competition are announced.

Omnibus: Within SEED, the Department is directed to support professional development 

that helps educators incorporate SEL practices into teaching, and to support 

pathways into teaching that provide a strong foundation in child development and 

learning, including skills for implementing SEL strategies in the classroom 

through a competitive preference priority as included in the fiscal year 2020 and 

2022 competitions.

In addition, the SEED program is an ideal vehicle for helping ensure that more 

highly trained school leaders are available to serve in traditionally underserved 

LEAs. Therefore, the Secretary shall continue to support an absolute priority to 

support the preparation of principals and other school leaders and disseminate 

best practices from such grants.

Response: The Department is not holding a competition to make new SEED awards in 

FY 2023.

Charter Schools Grants (CSP) 

House: The Committee encourages the Department to continue including in their 

evaluation of State CSP grants the extent to which State entities are utilizing the 

seven percent of funding received under the program to ensure that charter 

schools receiving CSP grants are equipped to appropriately serve students with 

disabilities and, by extension, prepared to become high-quality charter schools. 

In addition, the Committee urges the Department to ensure subgrantees are 

equipped to meet the needs of English learners. The Committee directs the 

Department to provide an update on these efforts in the fiscal year 2024 

Congressional Budget Justification.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Significant Items in FY 2023 Appropriations Reports—continued

13

Response: The Department continues to monitor the extent to which State Entity grantees

use funds to strengthen charter school authorizing and oversight practices and to 

ensure that charter schools receiving program funds are equipped to 

appropriately serve all students. Through the National Charter School Resource 

Center, the Department is preparing an updated report with descriptive 

information on how State Entity grantees are using funds reserved for technical 

assistance and on State Entity grantee activities to ensure subgrantees are 

equipped to meet the needs of students, including students with disabilities and 

English learners, and expects the report to be available on the Center’s website

in spring 2023. The updated report will include new information on grantees that 

first received funding in fiscal year 2020.

House: The Committee is strongly supportive of proposed requirements in the 

Department’s fiscal year 2022 CSP notice (87 Fed. Reg. 14197) that grantees 

show that they will not exacerbate school segregation. Accordingly, the 

Committee urges the Department to examine the merits of diversity reporting that 

compares demographic data of grantees to that of local districts. The Committee 

directs the Department to share its assessment of CSP diversity reporting, along 

with any prospective plans for implementation, in the fiscal year 2024 

Congressional Budget Justification.

Response: The Department is considering options for responding to this directive. 

Omnibus: Not later than 90 days after enactment, the Department is directed to brief the 

Committees on its actions and plans to provide adequate staff for and oversight 

of the Charter School Program (CSP); offer flexibility by allowing State entities to 

reserve a greater share of anticipated funds available over the life of the grant for 

technical assistance (TA) in the early years of the grant when such assistance is 

particularly needed, and improve the use of and prepare additional reports on the 

use of such reserved funds, including disaggregated data as it relates to students 

with disabilities and English learners, that includes: a description of the State's 

objectives in providing TA to grantees and the activities identified to provide the 

required TA; and a description of the impact of State action(s), or if no known 

impact, an explanation as to why.

Not less than two weeks before the publication of a notice of proposed priorities 

or a notice inviting applications, the Department is directed to brief the 

Committees on plans for carrying out a CSP competition.

Response: The Department will provide the requested briefings. 

Magnet Schools Assistance

House: To address the urgent issue of inter-district segregation, the Committee 

continues to direct the Department to include a priority for applicants seeking to 

establish new inter-district magnet schools for any new competition in fiscal year 

2023.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Significant Items in FY 2023 Appropriations Reports—continued

14

The Committee urges the Department to prioritize applicants seeking to establish 

and operate whole school magnet programs.

Response: The Department expects to continue including these priorities in its competition 

for new awards in fiscal year 2023.

Statewide Family Engagement Centers

Omnibus: The agreement directs the Department to use the increase provided to award 

grants for high-quality applications that could not be funded during the prior 

year's grant competition.

Response: The Department is complying with this directive. 

Fostering Diverse Schools

House: The Committee continues to encourages the Department, in consultation with the 

Department of Justice, to issue a report describing the scope of the issue of 

school district ‘‘secession’’ and its impact on school segregation. Such a report 

could note which districts are party to Federal desegregation orders and explain 

whether these secessions are in violation of those orders. The report could also 

note what oversight exists on the part of State agencies regarding school district 

secession in the States where they have occurred.

Response: The Department continues to examine the feasibility of the requested report.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

15

Summary of Request

Programs in the Innovation and Improvement account support the goal of improving student 

achievement in three key ways: providing incentives to test, evaluate, and expand innovative 

educational strategies and practices; increasing the supply of effective teachers and principals; 

and increasing diversity in schools. The Administration requests a total of $1.6 billion for these 

programs, an increase of $150 million, or 10 percent, over the fiscal year 2023 appropriation for 

this account.

Promoting Innovation

The Administration requests funding to support efforts to drive State and local innovation. 

Specifically, the request includes:

• $405 million for Education Innovation and Research to continue the program’s 

demonstrated success in developing an evidence base for strategies and practices that are 

effective in improving educational outcomes for students, including strategies that address 

the impacts of the pandemic or improve outcomes for students in foster care.

• $440 million for Charter Schools Grants to support the start-up, replication, and expansion 

of charter schools that can deliver promising and innovative solutions to meet student social, 

emotional, and academic needs, and to improve charter schools’ access to facilities. 

• $73 million for the American History and Civics Education program for competitive grants 

to LEAs, State educational agencies, institutions of higher education, and other entities with 

demonstrated expertise to improve the quality of teaching and learning in American history, 

civics, and government, including $50 million for grants to improve student understanding of 

civics through participatory learning and engagement.

• $36.5 million for the Arts in Education program to support State and local efforts to improve 

arts education, including in high-poverty schools, through the development and 

implementation of high-quality, cohesive, and innovative strategies for arts instruction; 

development and dissemination of instructional materials and programming; and 

professional development for arts educators.

• $31 million for the Ready to Learn Programming program to support the development and 

distribution of educational video programming for preschool and elementary school children 

and their parents, caregivers, and teachers to facilitate student academic achievement.

• $20 million for Statewide Family Engagement Centers to promote parent and family 

engagement in education and provide comprehensive training and technical assistance to 

States, local educational agencies (LEAs), schools, and organizations that support

partnerships between families and schools.

• $16.5 million for the Javits Gifted and Talented Education program to support a 

coordinated program of research, demonstration projects, innovative strategies, and other 

activities to build and enhance the capacity of elementary and secondary schools to identify 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Summary of Request—continued

16

gifted and talented students and meet their educational needs, particularly students 

traditionally underrepresented in gifted and talented education programs.

Supporting Educators

The Administration requests funding for programs that would provide competitive awards to help 

States and LEAs increase the effectiveness of teachers and principals.

• $200 million for Teacher and School Leader Incentive Grants to develop, implement, 

improve, or expand human capital management systems, especially in high-need schools.

• $93 million for Supporting Effective Educator Development to provide competitive grants 

to provide educators with evidence-based professional development and to support 

pathways that allow educators with nontraditional preparation and certification to obtain 

employment in traditionally underserved LEAs.

• $40 million in first-time funding for the reauthorized School Leader Recruitment and 

Support program for grants to improve the recruitment, preparation, placement, support, 

and retention of effective principals and other school leaders in high-need schools. 

Increasing Diversity in Schools

The Administration requests funding to promote racial and socioeconomic diversity in schools.

• $149 million for Magnet Schools Assistance to help LEAs establish and operate magnet 

schools that are part of an approved desegregation plan and designed to attract students 

from diverse backgrounds.

• $100 million for the proposed Fostering Diverse Schools program, which would provide

competitive grants to LEAs to develop and implement comprehensive plans for improving 

school-level diversity in preschool through grade 12. Funds would support grants for 

planning and for implementation. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

17

Education innovation and research

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended, Title IV, Part F, Subpart 1)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority:

Period of fund availability: 

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$284,000 $405,000 +$121,000

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Education Innovation and Research program supports the creation, development, 

implementation, replication, and scaling up of evidence-based, field-initiated innovations 

designed to improve student achievement and attainment for underserved students. The overall 

goal is to identify and support innovative and proven approaches that address persistent 

education challenges while also building knowledge of what works in education. 

Education Innovation and Research incorporates a tiered-evidence framework that ties the size 

of the Federal investment to the evidence base for funded interventions. For example, the 

program may provide up to $4 million in start-up funding to test promising innovations that will 

undergo rigorous evaluation, while investing $15 million for large-scale replications of proven 

interventions to assess their effectiveness in multiple settings with diverse student populations. 

Types of awards include: (1) early-phase grants for the development, implementation, and 

feasibility testing of an intervention or innovation which prior research suggests has promise, in 

order to determine whether the intervention can improve student academic outcomes; 

(2) mid-phase grants for implementation and rigorous evaluation of interventions that have been 

successfully implemented under early-phase grants or have met similar criteria for documenting 

program effectiveness; and (3) expansion grants for implementation and replication evaluation 

of interventions that have been found to produce a sizable impact under a mid-phase grant or 

have met similar criteria for documenting program effectiveness. All grantees must carry out 

rigorous, independent evaluations of the effectiveness of their projects.

Eligible applicants include: local educational agencies (LEAs); State educational agencies 

(SEAs); the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE); consortia of LEAs or SEAs; nonprofit 

organizations; and SEAs, LEAs, or the BIE in partnership with a nonprofit organization, a 

business, an educational service agency, or an institution of higher education. Grants are for a 

period of up to 5 years. Grantees must provide matching contributions equal to 10 percent of 

their grant award (in cash or in-kind) from Federal, State, local, or private sources; the 

Department may waive this requirement for individual grantees under certain circumstances. At 

least 25 percent of the funds appropriated for the program must be used for awards to serve 

rural areas, contingent on receipt of enough applications of sufficient quality.

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization in FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Education innovation and research

18

The Department may reserve up to 5 percent of program funds to provide technical assistance 

and disseminate best practices.

Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands) 

2019 $130,000

2020 190,000

2021 194,000

2022 234,000

2023 284,000

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $405 million for Education Innovation and 

Research, $121 million more than the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. The request would build 

on the Department’s success in using program funds to develop an evidence base for strategies 

and practices that are effective in improving educational outcomes for students. To date, 

innovative projects have been funded in a wide range of areas including social and emotional 

learning; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education; promoting 

equity and adequacy in student access and success in advanced coursework; and addressing 

the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on underserved students and educators. The request would 

continue recent efforts to develop and scale up evidence-based strategies that address the 

impacts of the pandemic. 

The request would also support a priority focused on improving outcomes for students in foster 

care through comprehensive academic, social, emotional, mental health, and other services. 

Students in foster care, who have higher rates of chronic absenteeism than non-foster students, 

are especially at risk for poor educational outcomes, including low rates of high school 

completion, and could benefit from innovative practices designed to improve these outcomes. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Education innovation and research

19

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Amount for new awards $161,939 $273,324 $383,250

Number of new awards 28 45-55 60-75

Amount for continuation awards $66,289 $1,363 0

Number of continuation awards 40 1 0

Amount for supplemental awards 0 $1,213 0

Number of supplemental awards 0 1 0

Peer review of new award applications $825 $1,500 $1,500

National activities $4,947 $6,600 $20,250

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

The measures reported in this section include data for grants under both the predecessor 

Investing in Innovation (i3) program and Education Innovation and Research. Thus, the 

measures for Expansion grants include data for i3 Scale-up grants that were still active in the 

reporting year; the measures for Mid-phase grants include data for i3 Validation grants; and the 

measures for Early-phase grants include data for i3 Development grants. However, in the text 

below only the current terminology is used. 

Data for these measures for fiscal year 2022 are generally expected to be available in late fall 

2023.

Goal: To improve educational outcomes for students by developing, identifying, and 

scaling up effective practices that are demonstrated to have an impact on student 

achievement and other student outcomes.

Objective: To validate and scale effective solutions for persistent educational challenges across 

the country to serve a substantially larger numbers of students.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Education innovation and research

20

Measure: The percentage of Expansion grantees that reached their annual targets of 

students served.

Year Target Actual

2019 66% 90%

2020 66 67

2021 66 40

2022 66

2023 66

2024 66

Additional information: Data for this measure for 2021 are from 5 Expansion grantees. Of 

these grantees, 2 met their targets and 2 were slightly below their targets.

Due to the low number of Expansion grantees, wider variation in performance on this measure 

from year to year can be expected. 

Measure: The percentage of Expansion grantees that reached the targeted number of 

students specified in their applications by the end of the project.

Year Target Actual

2019 66% N/A

2020 66 N/A

2021 66 100

2022 66

2023 66

2024 66

Additional information: No Expansion grantees ended their projects in the reporting periods 

for 2019 and 2020. Three Expansion grantees ended their projects in 2021; each exceeded 

its cumulative target for students served.

Measure: The percentage of Mid-phase grantees that reached their annual targets of 

students served.

Year Target Actual

2019 66% 50%

2020 66 47

2021 66 50

2022 66

2023 66

2024 66

Additional information: Data for this measure for 2021 are from 22 Mid-phase grantees. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Education innovation and research

21

Measure: The percentage of Mid-phase grantees that reached the targeted number of 

students specified in their applications by the end of the project.

Year Target Actual

2019 65% 50%

2020 65 N/A

2021 65 67

2022 65

2023 65

2024 65

Additional information: No Mid-phase grantees ended their projects in 2020. Data for this 

measure for 2021 are from 3 Mid-phase grantees. 

The source of the data for the 4 measures above is annual grantee performance reports and 

final performance reports. One of the goals of Mid-phase and Expansion grants is to expand the 

implementation of each intervention for which there is evidence of effectiveness while continuing 

to evaluate it to ensure that it is implemented well and continues to be effective on a larger 

scale. Therefore, reaching the targeted number of students is an important measure of success 

for these projects. 

A number of grantees have cited the COVID-19 pandemic as a factor in not meeting their 

targets for students served. The Department is examining other factors that may have 

contributed to lower performance with respect to these measures in recent years. In addition, 

the Department will continue to develop and refine strategies for providing timely and useful 

technical assistance to grantees in order to improve the quality, completeness, and consistency 

of the data, including the accurate setting of yearly targets for students served. 

Objective: To promote rigorous evaluation of projects that will generate significant new 

information about the effectiveness of diverse strategies, practices, and products that address 

persistent educational challenges.

Measure: The percentage of programs, practices, or strategies supported by an Expansion 

grant with ongoing, well-designed, and independent evaluations that will provide evidence of 

their effectiveness at improving student outcomes at scale and would meet the What Works 

Clearinghouse (WWC) Evidence Standards with or without reservations.

Year Target Actual

2019 100% 100%

2020 100 83

2021 100 75

2022 100

2023 100

2024 100
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Education innovation and research

22

Measure: The percentage of programs, practices, or strategies supported by a Mid-phase 

grant with ongoing, well-designed, and independent evaluations that will provide evidence of 

their effectiveness at improving student outcomes and would meet the WWC Evidence 

Standards with or without reservations.

Year Target Actual

2019 100% 95%

2020 100 74

2021 100 59

2022 100

2023 100

2024 100

Measure: The percentage of programs, practices, or strategies supported by an Early-phase 

grant with ongoing evaluations that provide evidence of promise for improving student 

outcomes.

Year Target Actual

2019 100% 93%

2020 100 66

2021 100 80

2022 100

2023 100

2024 100

Additional information: The source of the data for the 3 measures above is grantee evaluation 

plans. During the 2021 reporting period, 2 Expansion grantees were implementing an evaluation 

plan that is at risk of not meeting WWC standards. In addition, 14 Mid-phase grantee and 18 

Early-phase grantees were implementing evaluation plans that are at risk of not meeting WWC 

standards; half of these grantees cited the COVID-19 pandemic as adversely impacting their 

evaluations. 

The Department will continue to provide technical assistance on appropriate evaluation design 

and implementation to the grantees to improve the likelihood that their evaluations meet WWC 

standards by the end of the projects.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Education innovation and research

23

Measure: The percentage of programs, practices, or strategies supported by an Expansion 

grant with ongoing evaluations that are providing high-quality implementation data and 

performance feedback that allow for periodic assessment of progress toward achieving intended 

outcomes.

Year Target Actual

2019 100% 100%

2020 100 100

2021 100 100

2022 100

2023 100

2024 100

Measure: The percentage of programs, practices, or strategies supported by a Mid-phase grant 

with ongoing evaluations that are providing high-quality implementation data and performance 

feedback that allow for periodic assessment of progress toward achieving intended outcomes.

Year Target Actual

2019 100% 100%

2020 100 96

2021 100 100

2022 100

2023 100

2024 100

Measure: The percentage of programs, practices, or strategies supported by an Early-phase 

grant with ongoing evaluations that are providing high-quality implementation data and 

performance feedback that allow for periodic assessment of progress toward achieving intended 

outcomes.

Year Target Actual

2019 100% 100%

2020 100 87

2021 100 96

2022 100

2023 100

2024 100

Additional information: The source of the data is grantee evaluation plans. The Department 

will continue to develop and refine strategies for providing timely and useful technical assistance 

to grantees in order to improve the quality, completeness, and consistency of the data. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Education innovation and research

24

Efficiency measures

The Department established cost per student as the efficiency measure for this program. Data 

for this measure are based on total project costs minus evaluation costs divided by the number 

of students served by all grantees. Separating the evaluation costs is critical because of the 

significant evaluation costs for projects under this program. 

Measure: The annual cost per student served by grant type.

Year Cost per student, 

Expansion grants

Cost per student, 

Mid-phase grants

Cost per student, Earlyphase grants

2019 $416 $1,467 $1,572

2020 349 1,408 785

2021 480 1,881 1,596

Measure: The cumulative cost per student by grant type for programs, practices, or strategies 

that were proven to be effective at improving educational outcomes for students. 

Year Cost per student, 

Expansion grants

Cost per student, 

Mid-phase grants

Cost per student, Earlyphase grants

2019 N/A $2,087 $1,904

2020 N/A N/A 370

2021 $240 423 $1,431

Additional information: No Expansion grantees ended their projects in 2019 or 2020, and no 

Mid-phase grantees ended their projects in 2020.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

25

Teacher and school leader incentive grants

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, Title II, Part B, Subpart 1)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority: 

Period of fund availability: 

2023 

Appropriation

2024

Request Change 

$173,000 $200,000 +$27,000

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Teacher and School Leader Incentive Grants program makes competitive grants to help 

eligible entities develop, implement, improve, or expand human capital management systems or 

performance-based compensation systems in schools served by those entities.

Eligible entities include local educational agencies (LEAs); State educational agencies or other 

designated State agencies; the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE); and partnerships of LEAs, 

State agencies, and the BIE with nonprofit or for-profit entities. The grant period is 3 years, and 

the Department has discretion to provide up to an additional 2 years of funding if the grantee 

demonstrates success. In making grants, the Department is required to give priority to 

applicants that support teachers, principals, and other school leaders in high-need schools and 

to ensure an equitable geographic distribution of grants, including the distribution of grants 

between rural and urban areas. An LEA is permitted to receive (whether individually or as part 

of a consortium) a grant under this program only twice.

The statute defines high-need schools as public elementary or secondary schools located in an 

area in which at least 30 percent of students are from low-income backgrounds. Human capital 

management systems (HCMSs) are defined as systems that enable the LEA to make and 

implement human capital decisions (such as decisions related to hiring, professional 

development, dismissal, tenure, and promotion) and that include a performance-based 

compensation system. Performance-based compensation systems (PBCSs) are systems of 

compensation for teachers, principals, or other school leaders that differentiate levels of 

compensation based in part on measurable increases in student academic achievement. The 

systems also may include differentiated levels of compensation for positions in hard-to-staff 

schools and subject areas, as well as for recognition of skills and knowledge of teachers, 

principals, and other school leaders demonstrated through additional responsibilities and 

evidence of professional achievement.

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization for FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Teacher and school leader incentive grants

26

Grantees may use funds for a wide variety of activities to develop, implement, improve, or 

expand an HCMS or PBCS, including:

• Conducting outreach to gain information on how to construct evaluation and support 

systems;

• Providing principals with the tools necessary to make school-level decisions, including 

staffing decisions, in order to build high-performing instructional leadership teams for highneed schools;

• Improving LEA processes for recruiting, selecting, placing, supporting, and retaining 

effective teachers, principals, and other school leaders in high-need schools;

• Developing or improving evaluation and support systems that are based in part on 

demonstrated improvement in student achievement;

• Instituting career advancement opportunities that reward effective teachers, principals, or 

other school leaders in high-need schools; and

• Implementing a differentiated salary structure for teachers who teach in high-needs schools 

or teach high-need subjects, raise student academic achievement, or take on additional 

leadership responsibilities, or for principals or other school leaders to serve in high-need 

schools and raise student academic achievement.

Grantees must provide matching contributions, in cash or in kind, from non-Federal sources 

equal to 50 percent of the amount of their grants. Grant funds must be used to supplement, not 

supplant, other Federal or State funds available to carry out activities.

The Department is required to submit an annual report to Congress that provides information on 

grant award amounts and grantee activities, as well as student academic achievement 

information for participating schools. In addition, the Institute for Education Sciences (IES) must 

evaluate the effectiveness of the program; the Department may reserve up to 1 percent of each 

year’s appropriation for this purpose as well as to provide technical assistance to grantees.

Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands) 

2019 $200,000

2020 200,000

2021 200,000

2022 173,000

2023 173,000
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Teacher and school leader incentive grants

27

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $200 million for Teacher and School Leader 

Incentive Grants, $27 million more than the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. The Department 

intends to prioritize funds for teacher leadership models and activities that provide experienced 

and effective teachers leadership opportunities that allow them to have a greater impact on their 

school community while remaining in the classroom (and be compensated for additional 

responsibilities). This could include, for example, distributive leadership models which allow 

teachers to lead alongside their principal to facilitate positive schoolwide change; teacher-led 

instructional improvement efforts focused on specific areas of academic content; opportunities 

to shape schoolwide policies and climate, and lead professional learning communities; 

participation in master teacher programs, teacher mentorship programs, and job-embedded 

content coaching; and implementation of advisory systems. 

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Project Funding:

New awards funding 0 $93,727 $68,850

Continuation awards funding $171,270 $77,493 $94,000

Renewal awards 0 0 $35,000

Peer review of award applications funding 0 $50 $150

Evaluation $717 0 0

Technical assistance funding $1,013 $1,730 $2,000

Total funding $173,000 $173,000 $200,000

Grant Awards:

Number of new awards 0 15−20 12−17

Number of continuation awards 33 21 15−20

Number of renewal awards 0 0 5−10

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including Teacher and School Leader Incentive Grants, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA 

program. The Department did not reserve funds for this purpose from this program in fiscal year 2022 but may do so 

in fiscal year 2023 or 2024. Any amount pooled under section 8601 would not exceed the 1 percent evaluation and 

technical assistance reservation authorized for the program.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Teacher and school leader incentive grants

28

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

Current performance measures for this program include the following:

• The percentage of educators in all schools who earned performance-based compensation.

• The percentage of educators in all high-need schools who earned performance-based 

compensation.

• The gap between the retention rate of educators receiving performance-based 

compensation and the average retention rate of educators in each high-need school whose 

educators participate in the project.

• The number of school districts participating in a grant that use educator evaluation systems 

to inform recruitment, hiring, placement, retention, dismissal, professional development, 

tenure, and promotion.

• The number of high-need schools within districts participating in a TSL grant that use 

educator evaluation and support systems to inform recruitment, hiring, placement, retention, 

dismissal, professional development, tenure, and promotion.

• The percentage of performance-based compensation paid to educators with State, local, or 

other non-TSL Federal resources.

• The percentage of teachers and principals who receive the highest effectiveness rating.

• The percentage of teachers and principals in high-needs schools who receive the highest 

effectiveness rating.

Grantee reporting has been problematic. Department staff are reviewing grantee performance 

reports, but data are not yet available.

Other performance information 

The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) conducted two recent studies that provide information 

on effective practices relevant to the TSL program:

The Impact Evaluation of Teacher and Leader Performance Evaluation Systems1 examined 

districts’ and educators’ experiences with performance evaluation systems and their impact on 

classroom practice and student achievement in eight districts. The study provided resources 

and support to implement three performance measures: a classroom practice measure that 

provided feedback sessions four times per year, a student growth measure of teacher 

contributions to student achievement (i.e., “value-added” scores), and a principal leadership 

measure with feedback sessions twice a year. No formal stakes were attached to the measures; 

1 See https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/projects/evaluation/tq_performance.asp. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

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29

instead, they were used to provide educators and their supervisors with information on 

performance. Both treatment and control schools continued to implement existing district 

performance evaluations and measures, with the treatment schools additionally implementing 

the study’s performance measures and feedback. The study, which cost $21.5 million over 

6 years, was completed in December 2017. The key findings were:

• Performance evaluations were implemented generally as planned. For instance, in both 

study years, teachers and principals received multiple rounds of ratings and feedback on 

their practices. 

• On average, teachers received nearly the four intended feedback sessions per year. Most 

teachers had classroom observation overall scores in the top two performance levels, 

limiting the potential of the information to signal a need for teachers to improve. A majority of 

the teachers said the study’s feedback on classroom practice was more useful and specific 

than their district’s existing feedback.

• Principals’ scores tended to be lower than teachers’: many received scores indicating a 

need for improvement. Even so, nearly three-quarters of principals in the treatment group 

said the study’s feedback on their leadership was more objective and actionable than 

feedback received in the past. The goal of the principal feedback was to improve leadership 

skills, and the study measured two aspects of leadership: instructional leadership and 

teacher-principal trust. The intervention had a positive impact on teacher-principal trust in 

year 1 and on both instructional leadership and trust in year 2.

• While educator evaluation systems provided some information to identify educators who 

needed support, they provided limited information to indicate the areas of practice most 

needing improvement.

• The study’s performance evaluation system had a positive impact on teachers’ classroom 

practice on one of the two observation measures, and it also had a positive impact on both 

of the principal leadership measures. There was no impact on reading/English language arts 

achievement in either study year, but the mathematics impact in year 1 was the equivalent 

of about 4 weeks of learning. In year 2, the mathematics impact was similar, but not 

statistically significant.

In September 2018, IES began a new Impact Evaluation to Inform the Teacher and School

Leader Incentive Program1 that is designed to answer the following questions:

• What are the implementation experiences of the 2017 TSL grantees? What are their 

educator satisfaction, recruitment, and retention experiences with TSL, particularly among 

those grantees funding teacher leader roles?

• What is the effect on student achievement, educator satisfaction, recruitment, and retention 

of a teacher leader role strategy? Is the teacher leader strategy cost effective?

1 See https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/projects/evaluation/tq_leader.asp. 
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The evaluation will provide implementation information from all 2017 grantees, including 

information about strategies supported by grant funds. For those grantees supporting a teacher 

leader role, information will include teacher leader responsibilities and their teaching load, the 

stipend amount, how grantees select and train their teacher leader, the types of teachers 

targeted for support, and district and school contexts that facilitate or hinder the teacher leader 

role implementation. In addition, the evaluation will recruit approximately 100 schools to 

participate in an impact evaluation of funding teacher leaders to support their peers using 

activities similar to that funded within the TSL grantees.

Data collection will include a TSL grantee survey of all 14 TSL grantees receiving awards in 

2017 to gather information about their TSL program; teacher and principal surveys to collect 

program implementation information as well as educator satisfaction and teacher recruitment 

activities and outcomes; teacher leader activity forms to provide information about teacher 

leader roles and activities; teacher and principal school assignment records to look at mobility 

and retention; and student administrative records to look at student outcomes. The study has 

been delayed due to the pandemic, which required IES to recruit study schools over two school 

years instead of one to get a sufficiently large sample for a portion of the evaluation. The first 

report from the study now is expected in 2022, and the study is scheduled for completion in 

August 2024, one year later than originally planned.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

31

American history and civics education

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, Title II, Part B, Subpart 3)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority:

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$23,000 $73,000 +$50,000

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

American History and Civics Education is designed to improve the quality of teaching and 

learning in American history, civics, and government. Funds support Presidential Academies for 

teachers, Congressional Academies for students, and National Activities to promote innovative 

instruction and professional development for teachers and school leaders.

American History and Civics Academies

Presidential Academies for the Teaching of American History and Civics offer intensive 

workshops of at least 2 weeks to elementary and secondary school teachers to strengthen their 

knowledge and skills through instruction and interaction with primary scholars and accomplished 

teachers in these fields. Congressional Academies for Students of American History and Civics 

offer similar workshops to secondary school students to enrich their understanding of American 

history and civics.

The Department makes competitive awards for up to 5 years to institutions of higher education 

and nonprofit educational organizations, museums, libraries, and research centers with 

demonstrated expertise in historical methodology or the teaching of American history and civics. 

The Department may make no more than 12 grants in a fiscal year and must give priority for 

Presidential Academies grants to applicants that propose to use the resources of the National 

Parks and coordinate or align their projects with the National Park Service National Centennial 

Parks initiative. Grantees must provide matching funds from non-Federal sources in an amount 

equal to 100 percent of the grant amount.

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization in FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

American history and civics education

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National Activities

National Activities grants promote evidence-based instructional methods and professional 

development programs in American history, civics and government, and geography, particularly 

those methods and programs that benefit students from low-income backgrounds and 

underserved students. Grants support the development, implementation, expansion, evaluation, 

and dissemination of methods and programs that show potential to improve teaching and 

learning and demonstrate innovation, scalability, accountability, and a focus on underserved 

students. Grant projects may include civic engagement activities and educational programs on 

the history and principles of the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The Department makes 

competitive grants to institutions of higher education and other nonprofit or for-profit 

organizations with demonstrated expertise for an initial period of up to 3 years and may renew 

grants for an additional 2 years.

Funding levels for the program for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands)

2019 $4,815

2020 4,815

2021 5,250

2022 7,750

2023 23,000

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $73 million for the American History and Civics 

Education programs, $50 million more than the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. History and civics 

education play an important role in providing individuals with the knowledge of our Constitution 

and system of government, and the skills required to fully engage in an array of democratic 

processes, from voting to volunteering. This education can help ensure an informed citizenry 

and build trust in and respect for the institutions and activities central to a vibrant democracy.

Fiscal year 2024 funding would provide new awards under both the Academies and National 

Activities authorities ($23 million), as well as new Civics Participatory Learning and Engagement 

Grants ($50 million). 

Civics Participatory Learning and Engagement Grants

The request includes $50 million to provide new competitive funding to support Civics 

Participatory Learning and Engagement Grants. The grants would develop new, and expand 

existing, programs grounded in evidence-based, hands-on strategies that, enhance students’

understanding of how government functions at the Federal, State, and local levels, bring 

students from different communities together, promote student engagement and empowerment,

and help students develop digital and media literacy. 

The program would support partnerships that highlight the importance of active learning to 

understand and analyze the nuance and complexity of civic engagement and policymaking. 

Appropriations language would authorize the Department to award grants to LEAs, SEAS, or 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

American history and civics education

33

consortiums consisting of (1) an SEA or one or more LEA(s) and (2) nonprofit or community 

partners including IHEs.

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

American History and Civics Academies grants

Academies grants Amount for new awards 0 $2,975 0

Academies grants Number of new awards 0 5 0

Academies grants Amount for continuation awards $8281 0 $3,0001

Academies grants Number of continuation awards 1 0 5

National Activities grants

National Activities grants Amount for new awards $5,0681 $18,8941 0

National Activities grants Number of new awards 6 29 0

National Activities grants Amount for continuation awards $1,8521 $1,056 $20,0001

National Activities grants Number of continuation awards 2 2 0

Civics Participatory Learning and Engagement 

Grants (CPLEG)

CPLEG Amount for new awards 0 0 $49,950

CPLEG Number of new awards 0 0 60

CPLEG Amount for continuation awards 0 0 0

CPLEG Number of continuation awards 0 0 0

Peer review of new award applications $1 $75 $50

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including American History and Civics Education, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. 

The Department did not reserve funds from the program for this purpose in fiscal year 2022, but may do so in fiscal 

years 2023 and 2024.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures 

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program.

1 Includes frontloading of future years’ non-competing continuation awards. 
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Goal: To improve the quality of teaching and learning in American history, civics and 

government, and geography in elementary and secondary schools.

Objective: Participants will demonstrate through pre- and post-assessments an increased 

understanding of American history and civics that can be directly linked to their participation in 

the Presidential or Congressional academy.

Measure: The average percentage gain on a teacher assessment after participation in a 

Presidential Academy.

Year Target Actual

2019 10% 14%

2020 10 12

2021 10 21

2022 10

2023 17

2024 18

Measure: The average percentage gain on a student assessment after participation in a 

Congressional Academy.

Year Target Actual

2019 10% 11%

2020 10 18

2021 10 16

2022 10

2023 16

2024 17

Additional information: Data are from assessments created by the grantees’ evaluators 

drawing on questions from nationally validated U.S. History tests. Data for 2022 will be available 

in spring 2023. 

Objective: Participants will demonstrate through pre- and post-assessments an increased 

understanding of American history, civics and government, and geography that can be directly 

linked to their participation in National Activities grant activities.
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Measure: The average percentage gain on an assessment after participation in National 

Activities grant activities.

Year Target Actual

2019 10% 21%

2020 10 12

2021 10 19

2022 10

2023 19

2024 20

Additional information: Data are from assessments of participating teachers created by the 

grantees’ evaluators drawing on questions from nationally validated U.S. History tests. Data for 

2022 will be available in spring 2023.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

36

Supporting effective educator development

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title II, Part B, Subpart 4, Section 2242)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority: 

Period of fund availability: 

2023 

Appropriation

2024

Request Change 

$90,000 $93,000 +$3,000

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION 

The Supporting Effective Educator Development program provides competitive grants to 

institutions of higher education (IHEs), national nonprofit entities, and the Bureau of Indian 

Education, or to partnerships of one or more IHEs or national nonprofit organizations with a forprofit entity, for the purposes of:

• Providing teachers, principals, or other school leaders with evidence-based professional 

enhancement activities, which may include activities that lead to an advanced credential or 

additional credential, such as a special education, bilingual education, or career and 

technical education credential;

• Providing professional development to improve instruction in dual enrollment programs or 

early college high school settings;

• Providing support to teachers, principals, or other school leaders from nontraditional 

preparation and certification routes or pathways, such as high-quality mentoring and 

induction programs, who serve in traditionally underserved local educational agencies 

(LEAs);

• Providing evidence-based professional development that addresses literacy, numeracy, 

academic support, or other needs of LEAs and the students they serve; or

• Making professional development and related learning opportunities freely available to 

LEAs, including through publicly accessible electronic means.

Grants may be awarded for up to 3 years; the Department has the discretion to renew awards 

for an additional 2-year period if grantees demonstrate success. The Department must give 

priority for grants to eligible entities that will implement evidence-based activities and ensure 

that grants are distributed among eligible entities that will serve geographically diverse areas to 

the extent practicable. The statute requires grantees to use non-Federal sources, in cash or in 

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization for FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Supporting effective educator development

37

kind, to cover at least 25 percent of project costs each year. The Department may waive or 

modify this cost-sharing requirement in cases of demonstrated financial hardship.

Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands) 

2019 $75,000

2020 80,000

2021 80,000

2022 85,000

2023 90,000

FY 2024 BUDGET

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $93.0 million for Supporting Effective Educator 

Development, $3.0 million more than the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. The request would 

support continuation and renewal awards for grantees in prior cohorts as well as a limited 

number of new awards.

Supporting Effective Educator Development is an important vehicle for supporting evidencebased efforts to prepare, develop, and retain an effective and diverse teacher and school leader 

workforce, that can meet the social, emotional, mental health and academic needs of their 

students. Ensuring teachers and school leaders have these skills is more necessary than ever 

in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic when so many students are in need of academic 

recovery and social-emotional support. The Administration intends to continue supporting 

awards that are evidence-based projects that promote educator diversity in supportive, 

equitable, unbiased, and identity-safe learning environments; and develop students’ social and 

emotional skills. The Department also underwent rulemaking in fiscal year 2022 to specify that 

national nonprofit entities must demonstrate a record of serving or benefitting teachers, 

principals, or other school leaders across 3 or more states.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Supporting effective educator development

38

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Project Funding:

New awards $71,202 0 0

Continuation awards $1,680 $69,000 $75,000

Renewal awards $11,898 $20,980 $18,000

Peer review of award applications $220 $20 0 

Total $85,000 $90,000 $93,000

Grant Awards:

Number of new awards 20−25 4-8 0

Number of continuation awards 12 20−25 20−25

Number of renewal awards 6 10-14 4−8

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including Supporting Effective Educator Development, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA 

program. The Department did not pool evaluation funds from this program in fiscal year 2022 but may do so in fiscal 

year 2023 or 2024.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

The Department established the following five performance measures for Supporting Effective 

Educator Development. Targets have not been set for these measures because obtaining 

baseline data from grantees has proved problematic.

• The percentage of teacher and principal participants who serve concentrations of 

underserved students;

• The percentage of teacher and principal participants who serve concentrations of 

underserved students and are highly effective; 

• The percentage of teacher and principal participants who serve concentrations of 

underserved students, are highly effective, and serve for at least 2 years;

• The cost per participant who was highly effective and who taught in high need schools for 

2 years; and
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Supporting effective educator development

39

• The number of grantees with evaluations that meet the What Works Clearinghouse 

standards with reservations.

Data for the FY 2018 and 2020 cohorts funded after the reauthorization of ESEA are available 

for three of these measures; the most recent data was received in the fall of 2022. 

• Based on data from 11 of the 23 grantees who were expected to report, 1,491 program 

participants, an average of 90% of the target measure, served concentrations of 

underserved students.

• Based on data from these 11 grantees reporting complete data, 1,043 of program 

participants served underserved students and were rated as highly effective.

• Based on data from 3 of the 6 renewal grantees, 90 percent (482 out of 537 participants) 

served concentrations of high-need students, were highly effective, and served for at least 

two years. (These grantees are currently in the second year of a two-year extension period, 

and final year data will not be completed until early 2024.)

Data on the cost per participant will be available for the 2018 cohort in the spring of 2023; data 

for the 2022 cohort will be available in the spring of 2024. 

All 25 grantees from the 2017 and 2018 cohorts reported that they have evaluations that they 

believe will meet What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) standards with reservations; these 

grantees are conducting a total of 36 such evaluations. Determination of whether the 

evaluations do meet WWC standards will be made after the studies are completed.

During the last year, program staff have intensified efforts to improve the quality of performance 

information for this program. Activities have included development and dissemination of a 

revised guidance document that provides detailed information on what data are to be reported 

and how the data are to be analyzed, technical assistance webinars for project directors and 

their evaluators, and emphasizing to grantees the importance of submitting timely and accurate 

data.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT 

40

Charter schools grants

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, Title IV, Part C)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority:

Period of fund availability: 

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$440,000 $440,000 0

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

Charter Schools Grants support the startup of new charter schools and the replication and 

expansion of high-quality charter schools serving students in prekindergarten through grade 12. 

Funds also support grants to improve charter schools’ access to facilities and information 

dissemination, grantee technical assistance, and evaluation activities.

Grants for the Opening of New Charter Schools and the Replication and Expansion of 

High-Quality Charter Schools

State Entity Grants

Section 4303 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) authorizes the 

Department to make competitive grants to State educational agencies (SEAs), State charter 

school boards, State governors, and statewide charter school support organizations. Recipients 

of State Entity grants must use not less than 90 percent of grant funds to make subgrants to 

charter school developers to enable them to open new charter schools or to replicate or expand 

high-quality charter schools; not less than 7 percent to provide technical assistance to subgrant 

applicants and to charter school authorizers and carry out other activities to improve authorizer 

quality, including developing capacity for, and conducting, fiscal oversight and auditing of 

charter schools; and not more than 3 percent for administrative costs. 

Developers—individuals and public and private nonprofit entities, which may include charter 

management organizations (CMOs)—may apply for subgrants. In an application for a subgrant, 

a developer must describe, among other things, the quality controls agreed to between it and its 

school’s authorizer, such as a contract or performance agreement; how its school’s 

performance in the State’s accountability system and impact on student academic achievement 

or growth will be one of the most important factors for renewal or revocation of the school’s 

charter; how its school’s authorizer will reserve the right to revoke or not renew its school’s 

charter based on financial, structural, or operational factors involving the management of the 

school; how it will ensure that its school meets the educational needs of its students, including 

children with disabilities and English learners; how it will solicit and consider input from parents 

and other community members and support the use of effective parent, family, and community 

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization in FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Charter schools grants

41

engagement strategies in the operation of its school. Subgrants are for a period of up to 

5 years, of which developers may use not more than 18 months for planning and program 

design, including hiring and compensating school leaders and instructional staff. Developers 

may also use funds for activities such as providing professional development, making necessary 

renovations to school buildings, acquiring equipment and supplies, engaging the community, 

and developing student transportation systems. 

In making awards, the Department must give priority to State entities that support charter 

schools for at-risk students and that ensure all charter school authorizers implement recognized 

school approval and monitoring standards and procedures. In addition, priority must be given to 

State entities in States that: (1) have charter school authorizers that are not local educational 

agencies (LEAs) or, if only LEAs are authorizers, have an appeals process for prospective 

charter schools that initially fail to gain approval from the LEA; (2) ensure equitable funding for 

charter and other public schools; (3) provide funding or other support for charter school facilities; 

and (4) use best practices from charter schools to support traditional school and LEA 

improvement.

Developer Grants

If no State entity in a State receives a grant, charter school developers in the State may apply 

directly to the Department for Developer grants, which are awarded under the same terms and 

conditions as for State Entity subgrants to start up new charter schools or replicate or expand 

high-quality charter schools.

CMO Grants

Under section 4305(b), the Department makes competitive grants to nonprofit CMOs to replicate 

and expand high-quality charter schools. Priority for these awards must be given to CMOs that: 

(1) plan to operate schools with racially and socioeconomically diverse student bodies; 

(2) demonstrate success in working with schools identified by the State for comprehensive 

support and improvement under Title I, Part A of the amended ESEA; (3) propose to replicate or 

expand schools serving high school students; or (4) propose to operate schools that focus on 

dropout recovery and academic reentry. As with Developer grants, CMO grants are awarded 

under the same terms and conditions as for State Entity subgrants, including requirements that 

the schools to be replicated or expanded have demonstrated success in increasing student 

achievement and (where applicable) graduation rates, for all students and for each student 

subgroup, and have no significant compliance issues in the areas of student safety or school 

financial or operational management.

Since fiscal year 2018, funds for CMO grants have been available for obligation by the 

Department for an 18-month period, or until March 31 of the fiscal year following the year in 

which they are appropriated.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Charter schools grants

42

Facilities Grants

Section 4304 authorizes two programs through which the Department makes grants to improve 

charter schools’ access to high-quality facilities: Credit Enhancement for Charter School 

Facilities (Credit Enhancement) and State Facilities Incentive grants. 

Credit Enhancement Grants

The Department makes annual competitive Credit Enhancement grants to public and private 

nonprofit entities (such as finance authorities and community development financial institutions) 

that assist charter schools in acquiring, constructing, and renovating facilities by enhancing the 

availability of loan or bond financing. Grantees must deposit grant funds into a reserve account 

that is used to, among other things, guarantee and insure debt to finance charter school 

facilities and guarantee and insure leases of personal and real property. These credit 

enhancements are intended to reduce risk to lenders, thereby creating access to credit or 

lowering interest rates and borrowing costs for charter schools.

Grantees must invest reserve account funds in low-risk securities, and any earnings on such 

investments must be re-invested. Grantees continue to implement their projects until funds have 

been fully expended for grant purposes (such as to cover debt obligations of charter school 

borrowers in the event of default) or until financing facilitated by the grant has been retired.

State Facilities Incentive Grants

Authorized under section 4304(k) of the ESEA, the competitive State Facilities Incentive Grants 

help States establish or enhance programs that provide dedicated State per-pupil funding for 

charter school facilities. The Department makes State Facilities Incentive awards for a period of 

up to 5 years, over which States pay an increasing share of program costs. States may partner 

with other organizations to provide up to 50 percent of the State share of costs. 

National Activities

Under section 4305(a)(3), the Department uses funds to provide technical assistance to State 

entities in awarding subgrants and to recipients of facilities grants, disseminate best practices 

regarding charter schools, and evaluate the impact of Charter Schools Grants, including on 

student achievement. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Charter schools grants

43

Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands)

2019 $427,8591

2020 440,000

2021 440,000

2022 440,000

2023 440,000

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $440 million for Charter Schools Grants, level 

with the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. Consistent with the program statute, the request would 

provide start-up and facility support for charter schools that can deliver promising and innovative 

solutions to meet student social, emotional, and academic needs.

The request would provide the Department greater flexibility to respond to demand across the 

program components than under current law, including by eliminating earmarked funding for 

CMO grants. Specifically, the request includes appropriations language providing that not less 

than 75 percent, or $330 million, is for State Entity, Developer, and CMO grants combined. The 

remaining $110 million of the request could be used for any authorized program purpose, 

including for facilities grants and national activities. The requested flexibility would enable the 

Department to allocate funds more efficiently in response to varying demand for component 

program funding and prevent circumstances such as occurred in fiscal year 2019, when limited 

demand for funds that were available for State Entity and Developer grants (and that could not 

be used for other program purposes) resulted in the Department reprogramming funds to other 

programs in the Innovation and Improvement account to avoid returning funds to Treasury. The 

Department believes that greater flexibility is particularly needed with respect to CMO grants in 

light of decreases in demand for new and continuation funding since 2017, which has increased 

the potential of CMO funds reverting to the Treasury. Furthermore, challenges accessing highquality facilities contribute to charter schools delaying their opening or never opening.2 Providing 

the requested flexibility would allow the Department to provide more funding for facilities grants 

to address these challenges. 

In addition, the request includes appropriations language to ensure, consistent with statutory 

intent, that new program awards do not support schools that are operated or managed by a forprofit education management organization or other similar for-profit entity, including through a 

contract with such an organization or entity. This language would not limit the ability of a newly 

funded charter school to contract with a for-profit entity for purposes other than managing or 

operating the school, such as providing food services or payroll services.

1 The amount for 2019 reflects a reprogramming of $12,141 thousand of the $440 million appropriation from Charter 

Schools Grants to other programs in the Innovation and Improvement account, including $6,701 thousand to Magnet 

Schools Assistance and $5,440 thousand to Statewide Family Engagement Centers. 2 National Charter School Resource Center (2020). A Synthesis of Research on Charter School Facilities. Bethesda, 

MD: Manhattan Strategy Group.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Charter schools grants

44

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

State Entity grants

State Entity grants:Amount for new awards $60,388 $161,364 $108,864

State Entity grants: Number of new awards 6 6–10 6–10

State Entity grants:Amount for continuation awards $154,894 $41,692 $109,992

State Entity grants:Number of continuation awards 19 16 19–23

Developer grants

Developer grants:Amount for new awards $3,687 $4,000 $4,000

Developer grantsNumber of new awards 6 6–10 6–10

Developer grantsAmount for continuation awards $5,800 $1,644 $1,844

Developer grantsNumber of continuation awards 28 16 16–20

CMO grants

CMO grants:Amount for new awards $112,567 $139,800 $104,800

CMO grantsNumber of new awards 13 10–15 10–15

CMO grantsAmount for continuation awards $17,200 0 0

CMO grants:Number of continuation awards 20 0 0

CMO grants Amount for supplemental awards $10,000 0 0

CMO grants Number of supplemental awards 5–10 0 0

Peer review of new State Entity, 

Developer, and CMO award applications $417 $500 $500

Credit Enhancement grants

Credit Enhancement grants: Amount for new awards $57,735 $67,135 $79,800

Credit Enhancement grantsNumber of new awards 7 7 8

Credit Enhancement grants: Amount for supplemental awards 0 $5,765 0

Credit Enhancement grantsNumber of supplemental awards 0 1 0

State Facilities Incentive grants

State Facilities Incentive grants :Amount for new awards 0 0 $10,000

State Facilities Incentive grantsNumber of new awards 0 0 1–2

State Facilities Incentive grants :Amount for continuation awards $2,265 $2,000 0

State Facilities Incentive grantsNumber of continuation awards 1 1 0
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Charter schools grants

45

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Peer review of new Credit Enhancement 

and State Facilities Incentive award 

applications 0 $100 $200

National activities $15,000 $16,000 $20,000

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including Charter Schools Grants, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. The Department 

did not reserve funds for this purpose from Charter Schools Grants in fiscal year 2022 but may do so in fiscal years 

2023 and 2024.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures 

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

Data for these measures for 2022 are generally expected to be available in late fall 2023.

Goal: To support the creation of a large number of high-quality charter schools.

Objective: Encourage the development of a large number of high-quality charter schools that 

are free from State or local rules that inhibit flexible operation, are held accountable for enabling 

students to reach challenging State performance standards, and are open to all students. 

Measure: The number of charter schools in operation around the Nation.

Year Target Actual

2019 9,420 7,434

2020 9,890 7,555

2021 10,360 7,652

2022 10,830

2023 11,300

2024 11,870

Additional information: Data on the total number of charter schools in operation, including 

those funded by Charter Schools Grants, are provided annually by SEAs and are verified by the 

Department. The Department is considering revising the targets for this measure due to slowerthan-anticipated growth in the number of schools in operation in recent years.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Charter schools grants

46

Measure: The percentage of fourth-grade charter school students who are achieving at or 

above the proficient level on State assessments in reading.

Year Target Actual

2019 94.2% 48.2%

2020 99.2 N/A

2021 100.0 42.0

2022 100.0

2023 100.0

2024 100.0

Measure: The percentage of fourth-grade charter school students who are achieving at or 

above the proficient level on State assessments in mathematics.

Year Target Actual

2019 91.4% 44.7%

2020 96.4 N/A

2021 100.0 35.2

2022 100.0

2023 100.0

2024 100.0

Measure: The percentage of eighth-grade charter school students who are achieving at or 

above the proficient level on State assessments in reading.

Year Target Actual

2019 96.6% 49.9%

2020 100.0 N/A

2021 100.0 45.7

2022 100.0

2023 100.0

2024 100.0
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Charter schools grants

47

Measure: The percentage of eighth-grade charter school students who are achieving at or 

above the proficient level on State assessments in mathematics. 

Year Target Actual

2019 83.7% 40.8%

2020 88.7 N/A

2021 93.7 33.3

2022 98.7

2023 100.0

2024 100.0

Additional information: Analysis of the data has found notable variation in performance 

among funded schools. Data for these measures for 2020 are unavailable because the 

Department waived for all States the requirements in ESEA section 1112(b)(2) to administer 

State assessments in school year 2019-2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Efficiency Measures

Measure: The ratio of funds leveraged by States for charter facilities to funds awarded by the 

Department under the State Charter School Facilities Incentive Grant Program.

Year 2014 Cohort Actual 2019 Cohort Actual

2019 6.51 : 1

2020 2.61 : 1

2021 1.41 : 1

2022 3.53 : 1

Additional information: The leveraging ratio is the total funds available (the Federal grant and 

the State match) compared to the Federal grant for a given year. The State match amount 

excludes State and local funds that would otherwise be used to provide charter school per-pupil 

facilities aid in absence of participation in the program.

The Department also tracks the amount of funds leveraged and the number of schools served 

under Credit Enhancement grants. In 2021, Credit Enhancement grants leveraged $1.1 billion in 

facilities financing for 154 schools. Between program inception and 2021, Credit Enhancement 

funds have helped enable approximately $8.5 billion in financing for facilities of 967 charter 

schools.

The Department also developed a measure to assess the cost efficiency, across States, of the 

Federal investment in supporting charter school start-ups. The measure is defined as the 

Federal cost per student of launching a successful school (defined as a school in operation for 

3 or more years). Data for 2019 show an average cost of $1,060, for 2020 an average cost of 

$1,056, and for 2021 an average cost of $964. Data for this measure, collected through grantee 

annual performance reports, assist the Department in understanding the different costs per 

student for different types of charter schools. 
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

48

Magnet schools assistance

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title IV, Part D)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority:

Period of fund availability: 

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$139,000 $149,000 +$10,000

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Magnet Schools Assistance program provides Federal resources to assist eligible local 

educational agencies (LEAs) in the desegregation of schools by supporting the elimination, 

reduction, and prevention of racial isolation in elementary and secondary schools with 

substantial proportions of students of color.2

Grantees establish and operate magnet schools that are part of court-ordered, agency-ordered, 

or federally approved voluntary desegregation plans. The goal is to eliminate, reduce, or prevent 

isolation of groups of students of color within and across elementary and secondary schools 

while strengthening students’ academic knowledge and increasing opportunities to develop 

college- and career-ready skills. The program accomplishes this goal by supporting the creation 

and expansion of magnet schools that offer special curricula or instructional programs that 

appeal to students from diverse backgrounds.

Grants are for a period of up to 5 years, and grantees may not receive more than $15 million 

over the course of their projects. Funds must be used for activities that will improve academic 

achievement and may be used for, among other things, planning and promotional activities; 

acquiring books, materials, and equipment; and paying the salaries of effective teachers and 

other instructional personnel. Grantees may spend up to 50 percent of project costs in the first 

year and 15 percent in the second and third years on planning activities. Additionally, the ESEA 

authorizes grantees to use funds to establish or strengthen inter-district or regional magnet 

programs and to transport students enrolled in magnet schools, provided the transportation 

costs do not consume a significant portion of the grant award and the transportation strategy is 

sustainable at the end of the grant period.

By statute, the Department gives priority to applicants that: (1) demonstrate the greatest need 

for assistance; (2) propose to carry out new, evidence-based magnet school programs, 

significantly revise existing programs using evidence-based methods and practices, or replicate 

an existing magnet school program with a demonstrated record of success of increasing student 

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization in FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.

2 In this justification, we generally use “students of color” in place of the term “minority students” used in the program 

statute.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Magnet schools assistance

49

achievement and reducing racial isolation; (3) use methods other than academic examinations 

(such as a lottery) to admit students; and (4) increase racial integration by designing and 

implementing magnet school programs that increase socioeconomic diversity. Applicants that 

did not receive a grant the previous year receive priority for any funds appropriated above 

$75 million. 

The Department may use up to 1 percent of funds to provide technical assistance and 

disseminate best practices.

Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands)

2019 $113,701 1

2020 107,000

2021 109,000

2022 124,000

2023 139,000

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $149 million for Magnet Schools Assistance, 

$10 million more than the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. The request would support 

continuation awards as well as a cohort of new awards to create or expand high-quality magnet 

schools that can attract students from racially and socioeconomically diverse backgrounds.

Consistent with President Biden’s Executive Order on Advancing Racial Equity and Support for 

Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government, the Department is committed to 

renewing and expanding efforts to reverse the well-documented, persistent negative educational 

effects of racial isolation and concentrated poverty. Magnet Schools Assistance plays an 

important role in these efforts and would complement the proposed Fostering Diverse Schools 

program, which would provide grants to LEAs to develop and implement comprehensive plans 

to improve student outcomes by increasing school diversity in preschool through grade 12. 

Fiscal year 2024 awards under both programs would be informed by actions to improve diversity 

within and across school districts that the Department is taking beginning in fiscal year 2023 

using funds reserved for technical assistance and capacity building under Title IV-A Student 

Support and Academic Enrichment Grants, including grants to LEAs to develop and implement 

plans to improve conditions for student learning through increasing school diversity in preschool 

through grade 12. 

1 Reflects a reprogramming of $6,701 thousand to Magnet Schools Assistance from Charter Schools Grants.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Magnet schools assistance

50

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Amount for new awards $111,137 $122,332 $69,266

Number of new awards 19 20–25 12–15

Amount for continuation awards $11,512 $14,928 $77,894

Number of continuation awards 15 28 48–53

National activities $1,209 $1,390 $1,490

Peer review of new award 

applications $142 $350 $350

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including Magnet Schools Assistance, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. The 

Department did not reserve funds for this purpose from Magnet Schools Assistance in fiscal year 2022 but may do so 

in fiscal years 2023 and 2024.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

The Department does not set aggregate performance targets for this program; rather, each 

grantee sets project-level performance targets. Data are from annual performance reports.

Goal: Students have access to high-quality education in desegregated magnet schools.

Objective: Federally funded magnet schools will eliminate, reduce, or prevent minority group 

isolation in targeted elementary and secondary schools with substantial proportions of 

minority students.
INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

Magnet schools assistance

51

Measure: Percentage of magnet schools receiving assistance whose student enrollment 

eliminates, reduces, or prevents minority-group isolation (MGI).

Year 2016 Cohort 2017 Cohort 2018 Cohort 2021 Cohort

2019 10.5% 36.3% 52.4% N/A

2020 27.0 23.8 N/A

2021 25.4 23.8 N/A

2022 23.9 14.3 60.7%

Additional information: Data for this measure reflect the percentage of funded schools that 

met their annual MGI performance targets. In 2022, 26 of 109 schools in the 2017 cohort fully 

met their MGI targets; the remaining 83 schools did not meet their targets. For the 2018 cohort, 

three of 21 schools met their MGI targets in 2022. Seventeen of 28 schools in the 2021 cohort 

met their MGI targets.

The Department continues to examine factors that may be associated with the decreases over 

time in the percentage of schools meeting MGI targets in the respective cohorts. In 2022, 66 

percent of 2017 cohort schools and 44 percent of 2018 cohort schools that did not meet MGI 

targets cited the COVID-19 pandemic as the primary factor.

Objective: Magnet school students meet their State's academic achievement standards.

The following measures apply to the fiscal year 2016 cohort, whose grants were for a period of 

up to 3 years.

Measure: Percentage of students in magnet schools receiving assistance who score at the 

proficient level or above on State assessments in reading/language arts.

Year 2016 Cohort

2019 41.2%

Measure: Percentage of students in magnet schools receiving assistance who score at the 

proficient level or above on State assessments in mathematics.

Year 2016 Cohort

2019 38.8%

Based on lessons learned in measuring grantee performance, the Department revised these 

measures beginning with the 2017 cohort to focus on the percentage increase of students 

scoring at or above the proficient level on State assessments as compared to the previous year.

Data for these measures for 2020 and 2021 are unavailable because the Department waived for 

all States the requirements in ESEA section 1112(b)(2) to administer State assessments in 

school year 2019-2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 
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Measure: Percentage increase of students who scored proficient or above on State 

assessments in reading/language arts.

Year 2017 Cohort 2018 Cohort 2021 Cohort

2019 9.3% 4.9%

2020 N/A N/A

2021 N/A N/A

2022 16.6 -5.9 37.0%

Additional information: Data for 2022 for the 2017 cohort are from 52 schools. Across those 

schools, 41.8 percent of students scored proficient or above on State assessments in 

reading/language arts in 2021, and 48.8 of students scored proficient or above in 2022, an 

increase of 16.6 percent.

Data for 2022 for the 2018 cohort are from 11 schools. Across those schools, 47.6 percent of 

students scored proficient or above in 2021, and 44.8 percent of students scored proficient or 

above in 2022, a decrease of 5.9 percent.

Data for 2022 for the 2021 cohort are from 17 schools. Across those schools, 28.1 percent of 

students scored proficient or above in 2021, and 38.5 percent of students scored proficient or 

above in 2022, an increase of 37.0 percent.

Measure: Percentage increase of students who scored proficient or above on State 

assessments in mathematics.

Year 2017 Cohort 2018 Cohort 2021 Cohort

2019 9.6% 11.5%

2020 N/A N/A

2021 N/A N/A

2022 36.9 0.2 48.0%

Additional information: Data for 2022 for the 2017 cohort are from 54 schools. Across those 

schools, 28.7 percent of students scored proficient or above on State assessments in 

mathematics in 2021, and 39.3 percent of students scored proficient or above in 2022, an 

increase of 36.9 percent.

Data for 2022 for the 2018 cohort are from 11 schools. Across those schools, 40.6 percent of 

students scored proficient or above in 2021, and 40.7 percent of students scored proficient or 

above in 2022, an increase of 0.2 percent.

Data for 2022 for the 2021 cohort are from 17 schools. Across those schools, 27 percent of 

students scored proficient or above in 2021, and 40 percent of students scored proficient or 

above in 2022, an increase of 48 percent.
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Ready to learn programming

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title IV, Part F, Subpart 4)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined 1

Budget Authority: 

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$31,000 $31,000 0

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

Ready to Learn (RTL) Programming is designed to facilitate student academic achievement by 

supporting the development and distribution of educational video programming for preschool 

and elementary school children and their parents, caregivers, and teachers. At least 60 percent

of the funding must be used to:

• Develop educational television programming for preschool and elementary school children 

and the accompanying support materials and services that can be used to promote the 

effective use of such programming;

• Develop television programming (and digital content, such as applications and online 

educational games, containing RTL-based children’s programming) that is specifically 

designed for nationwide distribution over public television stations’ digital broadcasting 

channels and the Internet, along with accompanying resources for parents and 

caregivers; and

• Support contracts with public telecommunications and related entities to ensure that 

programs are widely distributed.

Remaining funds may be used to develop and disseminate education and training materials, 

including interactive programs that are designed to promote school readiness through the 

effective use of educational video programs.

Funds are awarded competitively, and only public telecommunications entities are eligible to 

receive awards. Applicants must have the capacity to: develop and distribute high-quality 

educational and instructional television programming that is accessible to underserved 

preschool and elementary school children; contract with the producers of children’s television 

programming; negotiate these contracts in a manner that returns to the grantee an appropriate 

share of income from sales of program-related products; and target programming and materials 

to meet specific State and local needs, while providing educational outreach at the local level.

Grantees are required to consult with the Departments of Education and Health and Human 

Services on strategies for maximizing the use of quality educational programming for preschool 

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization for FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
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and elementary school children. Grantees must also coordinate activities with other Federal 

programs that have major training components related to early childhood development. 

The fiscal year 2020 competition included two invitational priorities: (1) projects that focus on 

literacy content in ways that go beyond vocabulary and basic reading skills to include functional 

literacy, use of language in contexts, and other areas reflective of current literacy frameworks 

and research; and (2) projects that focus on content that meets young children's developmental 

needs and exposes them to future career and workforce options. The Department awarded two 

5-year grants in 2020:

• Twin Cities Public Television is using RTL funds to produce Mashopolis, which will 

employ research-based strategies around executive functions to increase workforce 

and career readiness for children ages 5-8. Mashopolis will use the power of narrative 

storytelling, interactive media, intergenerational learning and equity to engage children 

in building the critical skills they need to join—and lead—the 21st century workforce.

• The Corporation for Public Broadcasting will create new transmedia experiences 

(including television and learning games) for children ages 2 to 8 that expose young 

learners to a range of career and workforce opportunities in ways that inspire them 

to explore the world of work, and introduce, model, and promote the development 

of key skills; innovate on new media platforms that hold promise for extending the 

reach and impact of quality learning content, and open up new avenues of 

accessibility; and build new engagement models and resources that empower 

adults and communities to support early learning, with an emphasis on 

intergenerational learning.

Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands) 

2019 $27,741

2020 29,000

2021 29,500

2022 30,500

2023 31,000

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $31 million for Ready to Learn Programming, 

level with the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. With these funds, the Department expects to 

continue supporting awards made in fiscal year 2020. Researchers in many fields have looked 

carefully at whether and how considerable television viewing among children, might contribute 

to the “literacy gap,” and, conversely, whether and how television and digital media can be used 

as a tool to promote literacy development. Recent research suggests that television and 

transmedia can have a positive impact on children’s literacy and learning, provided certain 

conditions are in place. Producers and developers must understand how children learn, and 

how programming content can facilitate such learning. Individual episodes should reflect what 
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research tells us about effective educational programming. For example, programs that succeed 

in helping children learn tend to help children understand how to watch and make sense of what 

they see. Such programs also develop familiarity by using recurring characters and situations, 

repeat key tasks and information, link knowledge to what children already know, and are 

carefully paced to keep children cognitively engaged throughout each episode. 

Early childhood, preschool, and elementary school curricula typically emphasize foundational 

skills in math and reading. RTL content is specifically designed to reinforce young children’s 

literacy skills, emphasizing letter recognition, vocabulary, fluency, rhyming, and comprehension. 

Through targeted outreach and marketing campaigns, grantees actively reach out to parents 

and caregivers, particularly in rural and urban communities with high rates of poverty, to 

encourage the use of RTL programming to support the skills that children need to succeed in 

school.

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Number of continuation awards 2 2 2

Continuation award funding $30,500 $30,980 $30,980

Evaluation (review of grant products) 0 $20 $20

Total $30,500 $31,000 $31,000

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including the RTL program, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. While the Department 

did not reserve funds from RTL for this purpose in fiscal year 2022, it may do so in fiscal years 2023 and 2024. 

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the resources provided for the program, as well as the resources and 

efforts invested by those served by this program.

The Department uses the following performance measures to assess RTL’s effectiveness in 

improving what children learn, the quality of RTL-funded transmedia products, and the number 

of children RTL is reaching: 

(1) the percentage of summative experimental or quasi-experimental research studies that 

demonstrate positive and statistically significant gains in math or literacy skills when RTL 
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transmedia properties, such as applications and online educational games, are compared 

to similar non-RTL-funded digital properties or to other more traditional educational 

materials; 

(2) the percentage of educational transmedia products, along with necessary supporting 

materials, that are deemed to be of high-quality in promoting learning of math or literacy by 

an independent panel of expert reviewers; and 

(3) the number of children who use RTL-produced educational media products, 

disaggregated by individual product, as determined by appropriate industry standard 

metrics or, when available, by tracking tools.

The two 2015 grantees planned a total of four experimental or quasi-experimental research 

studies, to be conducted beginning in year 4 of the grant, that will provide data on the first 

performance measure. However, both grantees experienced delays in production. The 

Department received the first two of the studies in 2020, but neither of them demonstrated 

positive and statistically significant gains that met What Works Clearinghouse standards with 

reservations. The Department received the final two studies in 2021. The results of the first 

study were not statistically significant. The second study is pending What Works Clearinghouse 

review. The 2020 grantees have not yet submitted experimental or quasi-experimental research 

studies for review.

For the second performance measure, the Department asks expert panel members to review a 

random sample of current RTL transmedia products and provide a quality rating using criteria 

developed by the Department. The panel members rate products on a 5-point scale. In order for 

any particular product to achieve a rating of “high quality,” a product has to secure an average 

score of 3.8 across the panel members. In 2017, the Department received two transmedia 

product suites from one grantee to review. One of the transmedia product suites reviewed was 

of high quality, with a score of 4.41, while the other received a score of 3.74, just under the 

cutoff for high quality. In 2018, the Department received one transmedia product suite from one 

grantee to review, which received a high-quality score of 4.02. In 2019, the Department received 

one transmedia suite from each grantee to review, which received high-quality scores of 4.52 

and 3.85, respectively. In 2020, the Department received one transmedia suite to review that 

received a high-quality score of 3.9. The Department will conduct a product review in years 

three and five for the 2020 grantees.

For the third performance measure, grantees reported on the number of children who used 

RTL-produced products, by type of product. In 2018, 22.0 million users accessed RTL-produced 

educational media products. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) reported 

22.0 million users, of which 14.0 million watched CPB television shows and 8.0 million used 

Web-based games. Twin Cities Public Television (TPT) did not report any users for 2018. In 

2019, 19.0 million users accessed RTL-produced products, 19.0 million for CPB and 

1.2 thousand for TPT. In 2020, CPB reported 33.1 million users and TPT reported 9.5 million 

users for a total of 42.6 million RTL users. In 2021, 8.71 million users accessed RTL-produced 

educational media products developed by CPB. In 2022, 49 million users access RTL-produced 

educational media products developed by CPB. This includes TV viewers and media users for 

properties created as part of the 2015 grant that are also part of the 2020 grant.
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Efficiency Measure

The Department uses a single efficiency measure for the RTL program: dollars leveraged from 

non-Federal sources over 5 years (the length of each grant award) per Federal dollar dedicated 

to core non-outreach program activities. In the second year of the 2015 grants, the two grantees 

leveraged $6.9 million of non-Federal support compared to $19.9 million in Federal dollars spent 

on production, or $0.35 of non-Federal dollars for every Federal dollar spent. In the third year of 

the 2015 grants, the two grantees leveraged $8.8 million of non-Federal support compared to 

$12.0 million in Federal dollars spent on production, or $0.73 of non-Federal dollars for every 

Federal dollar spent. In the fourth year of the 2015 grants, the two grantees leveraged 

$11.8 million of non-Federal support compared to $11.6 million in Federal dollars spent on 

production, or $1.02 of non-Federal dollars for every Federal dollar spent. In the fifth year of the 

2015 grants, the two grantees leveraged $17.9 million of non-Federal support compared to 

$16.7 million in Federal dollars spent on production, or $1.07 of non-Federal dollars for every 

Federal dollar spent. In 2021, the two grantees leveraged $2.3 million of non-Federal support 

compared to $1.6 million in Federal dollars spent on production, or $1.43 of non-Federal dollars 

for every Federal dollar spent. In 2022, the two grantees leveraged $10.0 million of non-Federal 

support compared to $18.2 million in Federal dollars spent on production, or $0.55 of nonFederal dollars for every Federal dollar spent. 
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Arts in education

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title IV, Part F, Subpart 4)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority:

Period of fund availability: 2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$36,500 $36,500 0

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Arts in Education program supports national demonstration and Federal leadership 

activities to promote arts education for students, including underserved students and students 

who are children with disabilities. The program includes the following allowable activities: 

(1) professional development for arts educators, teachers, and principals; (2) development and 

dissemination of accessible instructional materials and arts-based educational programming, 

including online resources, in multiple arts disciplines; and (3) national and community outreach 

activities that strengthen and expand partnerships among schools, local educational agencies 

(LEAs), communities, or centers for the arts, including national centers for the arts. 

The program supports a number of arts education activities through 4-year grants to LEAs in 

which 20 percent or more of the students are from low-income backgrounds; State educational 

agencies (SEAs); national nonprofit organizations; institutions of higher education; organizations 

with expertise in the arts; museums or cultural institutions; the Bureau of Indian Education; and 

partnerships of these entities. Prior to 2021, the Arts in Education program supported three 

separate grant competitions: Arts Development and Dissemination, Professional Development 

for Arts Educators, and Arts in Education National Program. The Department reviewed the 

implementation of the three programs offered and found a large overlap in the applicant and 

grantee pool, and in the services provided across the various programs. In addition, the three 

separate competitions required applicants to design narrower projects to fit each program's 

specific requirements and to submit separate applications to each of the three grant 

competitions. Beginning in 2021, in an effort to recognize and encourage different, creative, and 

innovative applications, the Department offered the Arts in Education program as one, single 

competition.

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021; reauthorization for FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
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Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were as follows:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands) 

2019 $29,000

2020 30,000

2021 30,500

2022 36,500

2023 36,500

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $36.5 million for the Arts in Education 

program, level with the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. The Administration’s request would 

support State and local efforts to improve and expand arts education, including arts 

programming for underserved students, through the development and implementation of highquality, cohesive, and innovative strategies for art instruction.

Instruction and involvement in the arts, including the visual arts, music, dance, theater, and the 

media arts, are widely recognized as vital to a well-rounded education and may contribute to 

improved student achievement and success. Federal and State education policies have 

recognized the value of the arts. At the Federal level, the Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act (ESEA) includes the arts as one of the components of a well-rounded education. Similarly, 

at the State level, 45 States have arts instructional requirements for elementary school, 50 have 

arts education standards, and 42 have arts requirements for high school graduation. However, 

only 27 States have defined arts as a core academic subject. Results from the 2016 National 

Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) arts assessment show that in 2016, 63 percent of 

8th-graders reported taking a music class in school and 42 percent reported taking a visual arts 

course in school, which is not significantly different than the results from the 2008 NAEP arts 

assessment. However, in both music and visual arts in 2016, there are significant score gaps 

between certain student groups. Female students scored higher on average than their male 

peers (15 point gap for music and 14 point gap for visual arts); students from higher income 

backgrounds (as measured by eligibility for the National School Lunch Program) scored higher 

on average than students from lower income backgrounds (26 point gap for music and 22 point 

gap for visual arts); and students in suburban schools scored higher on average than those in 

city schools (13 point gap for music and 8 point gap for visual arts). 
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PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Assistance for Arts Education (AAE)

Amount for new awards $14,606 0 $9,778

Number of new awards 2 0 14

 emination:Amount for continuation awards $20,666 $35,328 $25,176

 emination:Number of continuation awards 27 28 28

Peer review of new award applications $31 0 $365

 emination: Interagency transfer to support the Arts 

Education Partnership $525 $525 $525

Evaluation $672 $647 $656 _________________________

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including Arts in Education, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. While the Department 

did not reserve funds from the Arts in Education program for this purpose in fiscal year 2022, it may do so in fiscal 

years 2023 and 2024. 

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the resources provided for the program, as well as the resources and 

efforts invested by those served by this program.

Performance Measures

Goal: To help ensure that all program participants meet challenging State academic 

content standards in the arts.

Objective: Activities supported with Federal funds will improve the quality of standards-based 

arts education for all participants.

Measure: The number of grantees that attain or exceed the targets for a majority of the 

outcome indicators for their projects.

Year Target Actual

2022 50% 63%

2023 55

2024 60
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Measure: The percentage of AAE participants who complete 75% or more of the total hours of 

professional development offered.

Year Target Actual

2019 70% 60%

2020 65 62

2021 65 56

2022 70 86

2023 70

2024 75

Additional Information: Prior to 2022, Professional Development for Arts Educators (PDAE) 

grantees reported on the percent of teachers participating in the program who receive 

professional development that is sustained and intensive. Sustained and intensive professional 

development for the PDAE program is defined as completion of 40 or more of the professional 

development hours offered by the PDAE-funded project during the reporting period; completion 

of 75 percent of the total number of professional development hours offered by the PDAEfunded project during the reporting period; and completion of these professional development 

hours over at least a 6-month period during the reporting period.

For 2020, sixteen out of seventeen performance reports submitted by grantees had data for this 

measure. Some grantees had issues completing the professional development planned for the 

year due to COVID-19 pandemic-related issues causing schools to close and grantees to 

rethink how they were able to provide professional development to teachers. Given challenges 

in 2020, grantees were still able to exceed last year’s results and come close to meeting the 

target.

For 2022, five grantees did not report data for this measure.

Measure: The number of accessible, arts-based instructional materials that are developed.

Year Target Actual

2019 84 84

2020 100 371

2021 200 745

2022 250 700

2023 300

2024 350

Additional Information: This measure was added to the Arts Development and Dissemination

program for the fiscal year 2018 cohort in response to statutory changes to the program 

authorization. Data for 2019 represents a baseline set by the fiscal year 2018 cohort.

For 2022, six grantees reported that they were in their planning year and did not develop 

accessible, arts-based instructional materials.
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Measure: The percentage of students participating in Arts Development and Dissemination 

programs who demonstrate proficiency in mathematics compared to those in control or 

comparison groups.

Year Treatment Control

2019 40% 39%

2020 21 18

2021 21 10

2022 20 22

Additional information: For 2020, only one of 21 grantees was able to provide data on this 

measure due to issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including waiver of State 

assessment requirements. Arts Development and Dissemination grants have ended and will not 

have data to report after 2022.

Measure: The percentage of students participating in Arts Development and Dissemination 

programs who demonstrate proficiency in reading compared to those in control or comparison 

groups.

Year Treatment Control

2019 45% 49%

2020 17 15

2021 17 28

2022 28 31

Additional information: For 2020, only one of 21 grantees was able to provide data on this 

measure due to issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including waiver of State 

assessment requirements.

The Department also developed the following four measures for the Arts in Education National 

Program (AENP). Targets for these measures are set annually by the AENP grantee. Data and 

targets for 2022 will be available in fall 2023. 

Measure: The total number of students who participate in arts education sponsored by the 

grantee.

Year Target Actual

2019 1,130,000 1,527,535

2020 1,240,000 1,596,693

2021 1,350,000 2,189,294

2022

2023

2024
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Measure: The total number of low-income students who participate in arts education 

sponsored by the grantee.

Year Target Actual

2019 490,227 490,227

2020 468,012 549,839

2021 864,184 875,125

2022

2023

2024

Measure: The total number of children with disabilities who participate in arts education 

sponsored by the grantee.

Year Target Actual

2019 135,000 135,074

2020 100,623 117,003

2021 185,800 260,292

2022

2023

2024

Measure: The number of teachers participating in the grantee's program who receive 

professional development.

Year Target Actual

2019 20,000 28,598

2020 25,000 32,621

2021 30,000 32,755

2022

2023

2024
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Javits gifted and talented education

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title IV, Part F, Subpart 4, Section 4644)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority:

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$16,500 $16,500 0

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

Javits Gifted and Talented Education supports a coordinated program of research, 

demonstration projects, innovative strategies, and other activities to build and enhance the 

capacity of elementary and secondary schools to identify gifted and talented students and meet 

their special educational needs. The Department makes grant or contract awards, typically for 

5 years, to State educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), the Bureau 

of Indian Education of the Department of the Interior, institutions of higher education (IHEs), and 

other public and private agencies and organizations to carry out projects to fulfill this purpose, 

including an award to one or more IHEs or SEAs to establish a National Research Center for 

the Education of Gifted and Talented Children.

Award recipients may use funds to: establish and operate gifted and talented education 

programs, which may include innovative methods and strategies for identifying and teaching 

underserved students in such programs; conduct research on methods and techniques for 

identifying and teaching gifted and talented students and on applying gifted and talented 

educational methods to all students, particularly students from low-income backgrounds and 

students who are struggling; and provide technical assistance and disseminate information. 

Funds also may be used for professional development and support for educators in such 

programs.

By statute, the Department gives priority in making awards to projects that include evidencebased activities or that develop new information to improve the capacity of schools to operate 

gifted and talented education programs or to assist schools in identifying and serving 

underserved students. 

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization in FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
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Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands)

2019 $12,000

2020 13,000

2021 13,500

2022 14,500

2023 16,500

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $16.5 million for Javits Gifted and Talented 

Education, level with the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. The request would support continuation 

and new awards designed to help schools identify and meet the needs of gifted and talented 

students. 

Consistent with the Administration’s commitment to promote equity in access to educational 

opportunities, the Department will continue to place special emphasis in making new awards on 

serving underserved students, including students of color, multilingual learners, and students 

with disabilities, for whom data from the Department’s Civil Rights Data Collection show 

persistent underrepresentation in gifted and talented education programs. For example, in the 

2017–2018 school year, Black students made up 15.2 percent of public elementary and 

secondary students, whereas they only made up 8.2 percent of students enrolled in gifted and 

talented programs.1,2 Serving underserved students also is consistent with the statutory priority 

on projects that assist schools in the “identification of, and provision of services to, gifted and 

talented students (including economically disadvantaged individuals, individuals who are 

English learners, and children with disabilities) who may not be identified and served through 

traditional assessment methods.”

1 https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d21/tables/dt21_203.50.asp?current=yes

2 https://ocrdata.ed.gov/assets/downloads/2017-2018/School-Programs/Gifted-and-Talented/Gifted-TalentedEnrollment.xlsx
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PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Amount for new awards $6,708 0 $7,500

Number of new awards 13 0 15

Amount for continuation awards $6,665 $15,500 $7,8601

Number of continuation awards 13 26 17

National Research Center for the Education of 

Gifted and Talented Children and Youth

$1,000 $1,000 $1,000

Peer review of new award applications $127 0 $140

 

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including Javits Gifted and Talented Education, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. The 

Department did not reserve funds from the program for this purpose in fiscal year 2022 but may do so in fiscal years 

2023 and 2024.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures 

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program.

The Department established the measures below to assess program performance beginning

with the 2019 cohort of grantees. Due to the extraordinary circumstances created by the 

COVID-19 pandemic, the Department waived Title I, Part A assessment requirements for all 

States for the 2019-2020 school year. As a result, data on the performance of students on State 

assessments for the 2019-2020 school year are not available. Furthermore, given the 

continued impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on assessment administration and reporting, 

2020-2021 data may be incomplete and should be interpreted with caution. Program 

performance measures not related to State assessment also suffer from reliability concerns. 

Consequently, the Department has not established targets for any of the new measures. The 

Department will report targets in future budget justifications. Data for 2023 will be available in 

early 2024.

1 Includes frontloading of future years’ non-competing continuation awards.
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Measure: The number of students newly identified as gifted and talented under the program.

Year Target Actual

2020 67

2021 685

2022 1,456

Measure: The percentage of students newly identified as gifted and talented under the program 

who were served under the program.

Year Target Actual

2020 47

2021 8

2022 63

Additional Information: The 2022 data for the two measures above reflect reporting from 10 of 

the 13 grantees making up the 2019 and 2020 cohorts. 

Measure: Of the students served under the program who were in tested grades, the percentage 

who made gains on State assessments in mathematics.

Year Target Actual

2022 76

Measure: Of the students served under the program who were in tested grades, the percentage 

who made gains on State assessments in science.

Year Target Actual

2022 86

Additional Information: The Department is not reporting data for 2021 for the two measures 

above because the lack of State assessment data for the 2019-2020 school year precludes a 

comparison between two consecutive years. The majority of the 13 grantees making up the 

2019 and 2020 cohorts did not report data for the 2021-2022 school year; therefore, 2022 data 

suffer from additional reliability concerns. The Department expects grantee reporting to improve 

in 2023. 

Measure: The number of teachers and other educators who received services that enable them 

to better identify and improve instruction for gifted and talented students.

Year Target Actual

2020 1,112

2021 1,573

2022 1,563
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Additional Information: The 2022 data for the measure above reflect reporting from 12 of 13 

grantees.

For the 2022 and future cohorts, the Department added three additional measures for which 

baseline data will be available in early 2024: 

• The number of underserved students newly identified as gifted and talented under the 

program.

• The percentage of underserved students newly identified as gifted and talented under 

the program who were served under the program.

• Of the students served under the program who were in tested grades, the percentage 

who made gains on State assessments in reading.
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Statewide family engagement centers

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title IV, Part E)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority:

Period of fund availability: 

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

$20,000 $20,000 0

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Statewide Family Engagement Centers program provides grants to statewide 

organizations, or consortia of such organizations, to establish statewide centers that carry out 

programs that promote parent and family engagement in education or provide comprehensive 

training and technical assistance to State educational agencies (SEAs), local educational 

agencies (LEAs), schools, and organizations that support partnerships between families and 

schools. 

Grantees must use funds to: assist parents (including legal guardians) in effectively participating 

in their children’s education; partner with SEAs to develop and implement systemic family 

engagement initiatives; and develop and implement parental involvement policies. Grantees 

must use at least 65 percent of their funds to serve LEAs, schools, and community-based 

organizations that serve high concentrations of underserved students. In addition, grantees 

must use at least 30 percent of their funds to establish or expand technical assistance for 

evidence-based parent education programs. By statute, the Department gives priority to 

applicants that propose to use evidence-based strategies for improving family engagement in 

schools in general. 

The Department may not award less than $500,000 to an individual project. To help ensure that 

projects are supported in local communities and financially sustainable, grantees must secure 

matching funds from non-Federal sources after the first year of their projects. 

The Department may use up to 2 percent of program funds to provide technical assistance on 

the establishment, development, and coordination of statewide family engagement centers. 

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization in FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
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Funding levels for the past 5 fiscal years were:

Fiscal Year (dollars in thousands)

2019 $15,4401

2020 10,000

2021 12,500

2022 15,000

2023 20,000

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $20 million for Statewide Family Engagement 

Centers, level with the fiscal year 2023 appropriation. The request would support continuation 

awards for approximately 20 centers (first funded in fiscal year 2022 or 2023) serving parents 

and families across the Nation.

Statewide Family Engagement Centers is designed to promote strong parent and community 

engagement and relationships, which is critical to efforts to improve our Nation’s schools and is 

a priority for the Administration. By communicating with parents, fostering trusting relationships 

between families and schools, particularly schools with concentrations of underserved students, 

and providing educational opportunities for parents and families, Statewide Family Engagement 

Centers grants can help lay the groundwork for sustained school, parent, and family 

partnerships and school improvement efforts.

1 Reflects a reprogramming of $5,440 thousand to Statewide Family Engagement Centers from Charter Schools 

Grants.
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PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2022 2023 2024

Amount for new awards $7,384 $11,181 0

Number of new awards 8 12 0

Amount for continuation awards $7,259 $7,790 $19,600

Number of continuation awards 12 8 20

Amount for supplemental awards 0 $629 0

Number of supplemental awards 0 1 0

Peer review $77 0 0

Technical assistance $280 $400 $400

 

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs,

including Statewide Family Engagement Centers, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. 

The Department did not reserve funds from Statewide Family Engagement Centers for this purpose in fiscal year 

2022 but may do so in fiscal years 2023 and 2024.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

Data for the measures are for the 2018 grantee cohort, whose projects will be implemented 

through 2023. As a result, no targets are shown below for 2024. Beginning with the fiscal year 

2025 request the Department will separately report data (including targets) for the 2022 grantee 

cohort beginning with 2023 and for the 2023 cohort beginning with 2024.
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Measure: The number of parents who are participating in program activities designed to provide 

them with the information necessary to understand their annual school report cards and other 

opportunities for engagement under section 1116 and other related ESEA provisions.

Year Target Actual

2019 Baseline year 49,746

2020 50,000 60,046

2021 60,000 95,439

2022 60,000 119,921

2023 60,000

Additional information: Grantees largely pivoted to online programming for parents beginning 

in 2020 and have therefore been able to reach more parents than anticipated.

Measure: The number of high-impact activities or services provided to build a statewide 

infrastructure for systemic family engagement that includes support for State and local 

educational agency level leadership and capacity-building.

Year Target Actual

2019 Baseline year 311

2020 350 816

2021 500 1,249

2022 500 889

2023 500

Additional information: In 2020 and 2021, grantees saw increased focus at the State and local 

levels on improving family engagement capacity. As States and districts improve supports for 

leaders and build capacity at the staff level, the Department expects that performance on this 

measure will level out, as initially reflected in 2022. Grantees have worked with a technical 

assistance contractor to define “high-impact” as consistently as possible across projects. 

Measure: The number of high-impact activities or services implemented to ensure that parents 

are trained and can effectively engage in activities that will improve student academic 

achievement, to include an understanding of how they can support learning in the classroom 

with activities at home or outside the school generally, as well as how they can participate in 

State and local decision-making processes.

Year Target Actual

2019 Baseline year 99

2020 100 935

2021 800 1,526

2022 800 1,284

2023 850

Additional information: Grantees largely pivoted to online programming for parents beginning 

in 2020 and have therefore been able to reach more parents than anticipated.
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Measure: The percentage of parents and families receiving services who report having 

enhanced capacity to work with schools and service providers effectively in meeting the 

academic and developmental needs of their children.

Year Target Actual

2019 Baseline year 91.9%

2020 80% 87.3

2021 80 88.7

2022 80 90.9

2023 80
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School leader recruitment and support

(Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, Title II, Part B, Subpart 4, Section 2243)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined1

Budget Authority: 

Period of fund availability: 

2023 

Appropriation

2024

Request Change 

0 $40,000 +$40,000

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION 

The School Leader Recruitment and Support program (previously authorized as the School 

Leadership program) provides competitive grants to improve the recruitment, preparation, 

placement, support, and retention of effective principals or other school leaders in high-need 

schools. Allowable activities include:

• developing or implementing leadership training programs designed to prepare and support 

principals or other school leaders in high-need schools, including through new or alternative 

pathways or school leader residency programs;

• developing or implementing programs or activities for recruiting, selecting, and developing 

aspiring or current principals or other school leaders to serve in high-need schools;

• developing or implementing programs for recruiting, developing, and placing school leaders 

to improve schools implementing comprehensive support and improvement activities and 

targeted support and improvement activities under Title I, Part A of the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act (ESEA);

• providing continuous professional development for principals or other school leaders in highneed schools;

• developing and disseminating information on best practices and strategies for effective 

school leadership in high-need schools; and

• supporting other evidence-based programs or activities focused on principals or other 

school leaders in high-need schools.

Eligible entities include local educational agencies (LEAs) or consortia of LEAs that serve at 

least one high-need school, State educational agencies (SEAs) or consortia of SEAs, an SEA in 

partnership with one or more LEAs that serve a high-need school, the Bureau of Indian 

1 The GEPA extension expired September 30, 2021. Reauthorization for FY 2024 is expected through appropriations 

action.
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Education, or one of those entities in partnership with one or more nonprofit organizations or 

institutions of higher education. The statutory definition of “high-need” schools references the 

percentage of students from families with incomes below the poverty line, with a minimum 

threshold of 50 percent for elementary schools and 40 percent for secondary schools. 

Implementing this requirement may require rulemaking as census poverty data are not available 

at the school level.

Grants may be awarded for up to 5 years; the Department has the discretion to renew awards 

for an additional 2-year period if grantees demonstrate success. To the extent practicable, the 

Department must ensure that grants are distributed among eligible entities that will serve 

geographically diverse areas. The statute requires grantees to use non-Federal sources, in cash 

or in kind, to cover at least 25 percent of project costs each year. The Department may waive or 

modify this cost-sharing requirement in cases of demonstrated financial hardship. 

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $40 million for School Leader Recruitment and 

Support, $40 million more than the fiscal year 2023 appropriation, for the first competition under 

the reauthorized program. Funds would support grants for high-quality professional 

development for principals, other school leaders, and aspiring principals and school leaders.

School leaders are second only to classroom teachers among school factors that affect student 

learning.1 They play a critically important role in students’ academic success, especially in 

underserved schools, by creating cultures of high expectations for all students and positive 

working conditions for teachers and other staff, as well as by recruiting and retaining highly 

effective teachers.

Projects would help ensure that the nation’s most underserved schools have resources to 

improve school leadership. Funded projects would help develop high-quality principal and 

school leader recruitment and preparation programs and help ensure that current principals and 

school leadership teams strengthen essential school leadership skills such as creating a safe, 

positive, and inclusive school climate, developing school leadership teams and professional 

learning communities, providing feedback to teachers to support their practice, and analyzing 

and responding to student data. In addition, the program would fund projects that implement 

distributed leadership models to support teachers serving in leadership roles.

1 Grissom, Jason A., Egalite, Anna J., and Lindsay, Constance A. “How Principals Affect Students and Schools: A 

Systematic Synthesis of Two Decades of Research”, February 2021. https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledgecenter/pages/how-principals-affect-students-and-schools-a-systematic-synthesis-of-two-decades-of-research.aspx
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PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2024

Project Funding:

New grant awards $39,600

Peer review of new award applications 400

Total 40,000

Grant Awards:

Number of new awards 20−40 

Range of new awards $500−2,500

NOTE: The Department is authorized to reserve up to 0.5 percent of funds appropriated for most ESEA programs, 

including School Leader Recruitment and Support, and to pool such funds for use in evaluating any ESEA program. 

The Department may reserve School Leader Recruitment and Support funds for this purpose in fiscal year 2024.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

The Department would develop performance measures for the program and publish them in the 

notice inviting applications. Measures could focus on the number of participants who meet 

certification requirements to become a principal or assistant principal, the number of such 

participants who obtain positions in high-need schools, and the cost per participant who 

becomes certified and obtains employment in a high-need school.
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Fostering diverse schools 

(Proposed legislation)

(dollars in thousands)

FY 2024 Authorization: To be determined

Budget Authority: 

Period of fund availability: 

2023 Appropriation 2024 Request Change

0 $100,000 +$100,000

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Fostering Diverse Schools program would help address the well-documented, persistent 

negative effects of concentrated poverty by supporting voluntary efforts to increase school 

diversity in preschool through grade 12. The program would make competitive awards to local 

educational agencies (LEAs)—alone, in consortia, or in partnership with State educational 

agencies—that have significant opportunity and achievement gaps and socioeconomic 

segregation or isolation within or across districts. Educational service agencies or other 

regional educational authorities serving such LEAs may also apply for grants. 

Fostering Diverse Schools grants would require applicants to demonstrate strong student, 

family, educator, and community involvement in their plans and would provide resources for 

communities to implement locally tailored school integration and improvement strategies. 

Applicants would have flexibility to develop and implement school diversity plans that reflect 

their individual needs and circumstances, and the program would promote the use of evidencebased strategies. 

Program funds would support two types of grants: (1) planning grants for activities, for up to 

18 months, that culminate in a strategic plan for increasing diversity and creating inclusive 

learning environments within and across districts, schools, and classrooms; and (2), for 

applicants with well-designed plans that were developed as a result of strong family, community, 

and educator engagement, implementation grants for a period of up to 5 years to carry out 

activities in those plans. The Department would give special consideration in making awards to 

applicants that partner with or leverage resources of State or local agencies (for example, local 

housing authorities), and grantees would be encouraged to partner with other entities, such as 

community-based organizations, social service agencies, institutions of higher education, and 

early learning providers to support implementation. Priority would also be given to projects that 

are inter-district or regional in approach, as well as to applicants for implementation grants that 

successfully complete planning grant projects.

Applicants for either type of grant could pursue a variety of school enrollment policies to 

promote school diversity. For example, applicants could allow students to enroll in public 

schools within or across districts through programs that promote diversity in schools or other 

student-assignment policies that consider the socioeconomic status or neighborhood of 

residence of students.
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Planning Grants

Planning grants would support a rigorous process that includes research and analysis, 

extensive educator, family, and community engagement, and the development of an 

implementation plan. Required activities for planning grantees would include: (1) completing a 

comprehensive assessment of the geographic area to be served, including using established 

survey or data collection methods to identify areas of socioeconomic isolation and stratification, 

student educational opportunities and outcomes, and related barriers to diversity at the 

classroom, school, and district levels; (2) developing and implementing a robust student, family, 

educator, and community engagement plan, including, where feasible, public hearings or other 

open forums to inform the development of a formal strategy to improve diversity; and (3) 

producing a strategic plan that includes specific performance metrics, activities, timelines, and 

cost estimates for improving diversity and student opportunities and outcomes in covered 

schools. To these ends, planning grantees could use funds for activities such as:

• Assessing the impact on school diversity of current school and district boundaries and 

feeder patterns, and identifying enrollment strategies that promote diversity while taking 

into account geographic proximity;

• Analyzing the location and capacity of existing school facilities and the adequacy of local 

or regional transportation infrastructure to support more diverse student bodies;

• Developing new school construction or siting proposals that promote diversity;

• Prototyping activities designed to improve diversity and student educational 

opportunities and outcomes in covered schools; 

• Identifying or developing strategies to evaluate and address segregation within schools 

with diverse student populations, including disparate participation in academic programs 

and other school activities that result in social segregation within schools and disparate 

access to educational opportunities;

• Coordinating with other relevant government entities, including housing authorities. 

Implementation Grants

To be eligible to receive an award, an applicant for an implementation grant must submit a 

high-quality plan that includes: (1) a comprehensive set of activities that is based on the 

assessment required of planning grantees and designed to improve academic opportunities and 

outcomes for all students, particularly students of color and students from low-income 

backgrounds, and increase integration within and across schools; (2) evidence of extensive 

stakeholder support for these strategies, including that the applicant has engaged in meaningful 

student, family, educator, and community outreach activities; (3) ambitious but achievable goals 

to increase diversity over the course of the grant period; and (4) regular collection and analysis 

of performance data to provide transparency and support continuous improvement.

Grantees would use funds to carry out one or more activities in their plans, which could include: 

• Creating or improving systems or partnerships that make information on public school 
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options easily accessible to students and families, with a focus on removing barriers to 

information access;

• Providing new or expanded access to specialized schoolwide academic programs or 

facilities designed to attract students from diverse backgrounds;

• Recruiting, hiring, and supporting diverse educators in new, expanded, or restructured 

schools, including professional development activities on implementing culturally and 

linguistically responsive practices and creating safe and inclusive learning environments; 

or

• Other innovative or promising activities designed to increase diversity and close 

opportunity and achievement gaps within and across schools.

National Activities

The Department would reserve up to 10 percent of appropriations for the new program to 

support a wide range of national activities, including research, development, technical 

assistance, evaluation, and dissemination. In particular, these funds would support intensive, 

customized technical assistance to planning grantees and a rigorous evaluation of 

implementation grants. Funds could also be used to develop and maintain a community of 

practice for information sharing among grantees and experts in the field.

FY 2024 BUDGET REQUEST

For fiscal year 2024, the Administration requests $100 million for a new Fostering Diverse 

Schools program, which would be authorized through appropriations language. The Department 

would use initial funds under this program for a varied cohort of planning grants and a robust, 

coordinated set of national activities while also making a limited number of implementation 

awards.

Fostering Diverse Schools is an integral part of the Administration’s efforts to remove the 

barriers to success that children and youth living in racially isolated communities or communities 

of concentrated poverty too often face. In particular, this program would demonstrate the 

Administration’s commitment to focusing national attention on—and significantly increasing the 

number of communities engaging in a robust and informed discussion of—the critical role 

schools that are diverse by design can play, as research shows, in improving academic 

outcomes for all students, as well as social and emotional, civic, and economic outcomes.1 

Fostering Diverse Schools would build on actions to improve diversity within and across school 

districts that the Department is taking beginning in fiscal year 2023 using funds reserved for 

technical assistance and capacity building under Title IV-A Student Support and Academic 

Enrichment Grants, including grants to LEAs to develop and implement plans to improve 

1 See https://tcf.org/content/facts/the-benefits-of-socioeconomically-and-racially-integrated-schools-andclassrooms/#:~:text=On%20average%2C%20students%20in%20socioeconomically,have%20higher%20average%20

test%20scores. 
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conditions for student learning through increasing school socioeconomic diversity in preschool 

through grade 12. In addition, the program would be complemented by the Administration’s 

funding request for Magnet Schools Assistance, which supports efforts to desegregate schools 

by creating special instructional programs that appeal to diverse students.

PROGRAM OUTPUT MEASURES 

(dollars in thousands)

Output Measures 2024

Amount for grants $89,500

Number of new planning grants 15

Average planning grant award $1,500

Number of new implementation grants 4-5

Average implementation grant award $15,000

Peer review of new award applications $500

National activities $10,000

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Performance Measures

This section presents selected program performance information, including, for example, 

program goals, objectives, measures, and performance targets and data; and an assessment of 

the progress made toward achieving program results. Achievement of program results is based 

on the cumulative effect of the Federal resources provided for the program as well as the 

resources and efforts invested by those served by the program. 

The Department will establish performance measures to assess the impact of the activities that 

receive support under this program, based in part on the goals established by grantees. The 

development of these measures would build on our experience in creating performance 

measures for other programs, and the Department would also seek to align program measures 

for Fostering Diverse Schools with measures for related programs, including Magnet Schools 

Assistance.
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Account Summary Table

Click here for the online version

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION FISCAL YEAR 2024 PRESIDENT'S BUDGET

(in thousands of dollars)

Cat 

Code 2022 Appropriation 2023 Appropriation

2024 President's 

Budget Request

FY 2024 President's Budget Request

Compared to FY 2023 Appropriation

Amount Percent

Innovation and Improvement

1. Education innovation and research (ESEA IV-F-1) D 234,000 284,000 405,000 121,000 42.61%

2. Teacher and school leader incentive grants(ESEA II-B-1) D 173,000 173,000 200,000 27,000 15.61%

3. American history and civics education (ESEA II-B-3) D 7,750 23,000 73,000 50,000 217.39%

4. Supporting effective educator development(SEED) (ESEA II-B-4,section 2242) D 85,000 90,000 93,000 3,000 3.33%

5. Charterschools grants(ESEA IV-C) D 440,000 440,000 440,000 0 0.00%

6. Magnet schools assistance (ESEA IV-D) D 124,000 139,000 149,000 10,000 7.19%

7. Ready to learn programming (ESEA IV-F-4,section 4643) D 30,500 31,000 31,000 0 0.00%

8. Artsin education (ESEA IV-F-4,section 4642) D 36,500 36,500 36,500 0 0.00%

9. Javits gifted and talented education (ESEA IV-F-4,section 4644) D 14,500 16,500 16,500 0 0.00%

10. Statewide family engagement centers(ESEA IV-E) D 15,000 20,000 20,000 0 0.00%

11. School Leader Recruitment and Support (ESEA II-B-4,section 2243) D 0 0 40,000 40,000 —

12. Fostering Diverse Schools (proposed legislation) D 0 0 100,000 100,000 —

13. Community Project Funding/Congressionally Directed Spending D 140,480 200,443 0 -200,443 -100.00%

Total D 1,300,730 1,453,443 1,604,000 150,557 10.36%

NOTES:

1) D = discretionary program; M = mandatory programs

2) Detail may not add to totals due to rounding.