How to Apply

Step 1: Read and Prepare

The following information is important in helping you prepare to write your grant application. Please be sure to have the following items completed.

21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) programs provide safe, enriching learning opportunities for students during their out-of-school time.  This may include before school, after school, summer and school breaks.  Through community partnerships, these programs are designed to offer students’ academic enrichment through hands-on, project-based and active learning strategies.  As a supplemental program, the 21st CCLC design should align with or complement regular academic programming, but not replicate it.

Eligible applicants must propose to serve students who attend a school site that is eligible for designation as a Title I school-wide program.

Faith-based and community-based organizations may apply in partnership with a local school district. Applicants may apply to serve students from up to two (2) school sites with the grant. For purposes of this grant, a school site will be defined using the school site listing as posted on the OSDE School District Directory.

In some cases, private schools and Native American tribes must be included in consultation about the design of the program before submitting an application. Please be sure to check our Applicant FAQs page for more information on this and how to find out if your potential program will need to include this in its program partners and design.

The 21st CCLC grant opens every spring dependent upon available federal funding. If you would like immediate notification when the grant opens, please sign up for the e-newsletter in the bottom right corner of the front page of the OSDE website. 

Throughout the year prior to writing an application, it is expected that high-quality applicants will take the following steps:

• Develop an advisory committee
• Conduct a needs assessment
• Engage community partners and stakeholders
• Develop proposed program design

Advisory Committee

The establishment of an advisory committee is a requirement of this grant. This committee should meet together regularly and play a key role in writing and implementing the 21st CCLC grant proposal. The role of an advisory committee is to function as a leadership group to the 21st CCLC; advising and guiding the school administrator, program director, and staff in the areas of but not limited to: community engagement and support, conducting needs assessments, grant and program development, obtaining resources, and strengthening assets. It is encouraged that the advisory committee be involved in major aspects of the program and regularly participates in events, activities, and various aspects of the program as needed and to fulfill their role. Throughout the term of the grant, the advisory committee will be expected to remain deeply engaged in the development, implementation, and evaluation of the program.

Program monitoring and evaluation are two of the most important aspects of a quality 21st CCLC program. The advisory committee should plan to participate in monitoring visits, and attend training on and participate in program evaluation to gain an understanding of the full scope of the program development.

If a grant writer is used, the advisory committee should work closely with that person to ensure that a reasonable, consistent, and original application is submitted. The awarded organization will be held responsible for the execution of the program plan and performance goals as stated in the application.

• Grant funds cannot be used to pay for a grant writer
• Awarded applicants will be held to the application that was submitted
• Grant writer must be identified
• Advisory Committee must be involved in writing the grant

Every grant application submitted must be an original application

Needs Assessment

Use specific, relevant, and current data regarding the students and families to be served by the project, including recent community needs assessments and an inventory of community assets/resources. The application must accurately reflect the unique demographics and formally identified needs of the applicant district and sites.

Engaging District Financial Officers

Prospective applicants are encouraged to engage LEA financial officers in the application process. A thorough knowledge of current financial supports will reduce the risk of supplanting funds, ensuring that all proposed items in the budget are reasonable, necessary, and appropriate. Financial officers of school districts will also be familiar with Oklahoma Cost Accounting System (OCAS) coding requirements, ensuring correct coding and budgeting procedures from the beginning.

Grant Guidance

The 21st CCLC grant is a federal grant and therefore adheres to very specific parameters in certain areas. We strongly encourage prospective applicants to gain thorough knowledge and understanding of both the USDE Guidance and the OSDE Guidance before applying.

• USDE Guidance (pdf)

• OSDE Guidance (pdf)

Begin the Application Process

The grant competition opens in the Spring and all links to grant forms will become live. This section is intended to give you an idea of the grant process when it is open. At that time, please follow these steps to complete the application process. Grants will be awarded pending the availability of federal funds. A visual flowchart of the application process is available here.

Step 2: ALL applicants MUST complete a Letter of Intent form

Every grant applicant whether a school district or a community-based organization must complete the Letter of Intent form and submit it before proceeding to the online system to begin writing the proposal. Failure to submit a Letter of Intent prior to the deadline may invalidate your application.

• Letter of Intent form 

          - Deadline for Letter of Intent to be announced

Step 3: Obtain Grants Management System Access

*School districts skip to Step 4. 

Grant applications for 21st CCLC funding are completed through the online Grants Management System (GMS). All non-district organizations will receive log-in credentials from the 21st CCLC office to gain access to the GMS. Please fill out the Credential Request form, sign the form, and email a scanned copy to: Sonia.Johnson@sde.ok.gov.

• Credential Request Form (pdf) 

  - Deadline to request log-in credentials for the Grants Management System to be announced.

• Community-based organizations that have previously been funded do not need to request new credentials.
• The chief official of your organization will be contacted by phone and given the credentials to access the grant application for all users listed on the Credential Request Form along with a link and instructions for accessing the GMS directly.

Step 4: Log in and BEGIN YOUR APPLICATION

When your Letter of Intent to Apply has been reviewed, you will be contacted to begin working on your application.

The application is located in the Grants Management System.  

This document will help acquaint applicants with Navigating the Grant Application.

• Non-district community-based organizations may access the application by the direct link to the Grants Management System that was provided by the 21st CCLC grant office.
• School districts may access the GMS through the Single-Sign On system after the grant application opens.

- 2019 grant competition not yet open. 

Please continue to refer to the USDE and the OSDE Grant Guidance as well as the Applicant FAQs on the 21st CCLC website as you construct your application.

Remember:

• The application has a hard deadline. At that time, the system will close and no other applications will be accepted.

• Answers to many of your questions may be found on the Applicant FAQ page. 

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