The DPI has released additional guidance related to the Elementary and Secondary Education Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) to support public school districts and private schools in navigating the consultation and planning process for using the funds to support students during COVID-19.
The guidance can be found here, Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Equitable Participation. Additionally, the DPI has added this ESSER FAQ to the ESSER page on the DPI website.
The DPI has communicated to districts that they can and should communicate a “deadline” for private schools to respond to the district’s request for consultation and/or for the private school to indicate their intent to participate once a district reaches out.
Here is the specific language from DPI instructing districts to utilize deadlines for responses to requests for consultation or for schools to indicate their intent to participate:
“Invite private schools for consultation. The invitation may include this document explaining equitable participation.
You may start by sending an email or letter to the private school inviting them to consult on equitable participation in the ESSER grant, allowing at least 10 days for the school to respond. (Note: the correspondence must indicate a timeline for a response.)
If after ten days the private school does not respond, follow up at least two times (on two seperate days) with either a phone call and/or an email. Document the attempts to contact the private school, indicating who you tried contacting along with the date and time. If there is no response after 10 days, you may assume the private school is not interested in participating. You may upload a copy of the correspondence along with the documentation of your two attempts to contact the private school into WISEgrants demonstrating your attempt to reach out for consultation.”
Indicating an intent to participate or consult is NOT the same thing as signing the Affirmation of Consultation form. The above guidance is placing a deadline on private schools to indicate an intent to participate and/or to agree to consult.
If the private school intends to participate and agrees to consult and after consultation, does not feel like the program design is equitable in relation to private school participation or that consultation was not timely and meaningful, the private school should indicate as such on the Affirmation of Consultation for ESSER form.
However, schools should keep in mind that by checking “no” on the Affirmation of Consultation form indicating they did not receive timely and meaningful consultation, the process for funding will be stopped/stalled while a resolution/agreement is reached between the district and related private schools.
If you have questions related to ESSER please contact the Wisconsin Private School Ombudsman at essaombudsman@dpi.wi.gov.
