Narrative: III. b. 5. B. i.

The Vermont AOE will run competitions for its funds under WIOA Title II using the procedures established by the State of Vermont for awarding grants or contracts and the guidance available from WIOA regulations. The application to apply will be made available to all eligible providers on the Vermont AOE Website. The grant opportunity and availability of the application will be widely announced through AOE and other network list serves.

An eligible provider is an organization that has demonstrated effectiveness in providing adult education and literacy activities and is eligible to apply for funds under WIOA Title II. An eligible provider may include, but is not limited to: a local educational agency; a community-based organization or faith-based organization; a volunteer literacy organization; an institution of higher education; a public or private nonprofit agency; a library; a public housing authority; a nonprofit institution with the ability to provide adult education and literacy activities to eligible individuals; a consortium or coalition of the agencies, organizations, institutions, libraries, or authorities described above; and a partnership between an employer and an entity described above.

The AOE will determine an organization’s status as an eligible provider by obtaining performance data from the organization on its record of improving skills of eligible individuals, particularly those who have low levels of literacy. Prior to accepting full proposals, the Vermont AOE will request a letter of intent from interested organizations. The AOE will take questions and provide technical assistance to eligible providers preparing proposals. All full proposals will be submitted directly to the AOE exclusively. Each eligible provider will submit a single proposal to the AOE to fund one or more of sections 225, 231, and 243 and to serve one or more counties. As required by WIOA Title I B, local adult education and literacy activity proposals will be reviewed by the State Workforce Development Board (SWDB) for alignment with the State plan using a procedure and rubric established by the SWDB and the Vermont AOE. Because Vermont operates as a Single State Local Area, local proposals will be reviewed by the SWDB for alignment.

The AOE will score responses from eligible providers using a rubric based on these considerations for awarding grants or contracts as described in WIOA as pertinent to the proposed scope of work:

1. The degree to which the provider would be responsive to regional needs of the workforce and serving individuals most in need of adult education and literacy activities.
2. The ability of the provider to serve individuals with disabilities, including learning disabilities.
3. Past effectiveness of the provider in improving literacy of individuals, especially those who have low levels of literacy, and past effectiveness in meeting established performance targets.
4. The extent of alignment between proposed services and the regional strategies and goals of the workforce development system, and alignment with the services of the other one-stop partners.
5. Whether the provider’s program is of sufficient intensity and quality, and based on the most rigorous research available so that participants achieve substantial learning gains, and uses instructional practices that include the essential components of reading instruction.
6. Whether the provider’s activities, including reading, writing, speaking, math, and English language acquisition instruction are based upon best practices and the most rigorous research available and appropriate.
7. Whether the provider’s activities effectively use technology, services, and delivery systems possibly to include distance education in a manner sufficient to increase the amount and quality of the learning and how such technology, services, and systems lead to improved performance.
8. Whether the provider’s activities provide learning in context, including through integrated education and training, so that an individual acquires the skills needed to transition to and complete postsecondary education and training programs, obtain and advance in employment leading to economic self-sufficiency, and to exercise the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
9. Whether the provider’s activities are delivered by well training instructors and program staff who access high quality professional development opportunities, including via the Literacy Information and Communications System (LINCS).
10. Whether the provider’s activities, for the development of career pathways, coordinate with other available education, training, and social service resources in the community and other One-Stop Center partners.
11. Whether the provider’s activities offer flexible schedules and coordination with federal, state, and local support services that are necessary to enable individuals to attend and complete programs.
12. Whether the provider maintains student records in Data Works, which has the capacity to report measurable participant outcomes and to monitor program performance.
13. Whether the local areas served by the provider have a demonstrated need for additional English language acquisition and civics education programs.

AEFLA funds will be distributed in compliance with the Vermont State Board of Education’s FUNDING FORMULA RULE. The formula links adult education and literacy funding to the need for services at the county level, is responsive to the needs of adults, and gives weight to populations most likely to demand services. The formula consists of three parts:

1) Base of $30,000 to each county;

2) 70% of balance for allocation on basis of statewide need - the need of the county relative to all counties in the state (State Need);

3) 30% of balance allocated on basis of comparative density of need within each county (County Burden). Indicators of need for services, used in both the State Need and County Burden sections of the formula are:

• 15% … un- or under-employed persons without a high school diploma;
• 50% … persons 18 or older without a high school diploma;
• 20% … persons living at 125% of poverty
• 15% … persons in categories of offenders, mothers without high school diplomas, and for whom English is a second language.

Data for indicators are updated annually with the most current information available.

1) Population: census data or most recent population estimates published by the Vermont Department of Health.

2) Several data categories are based on census and therefore not updated annually:

• persons 18 or older without a high school diploma;
• persons living at 125% of poverty;
• persons for whom English is a second language.

3) Data for three indicators is available on a more regular basis from other State agencies:

• un- or under-employed persons without a high school diploma;
• offenders;
• mothers without high school diplomas.

Funds will be awarded to eligible providers of adult education and literacy services on a basis of three or more years beginning July 1, 2017 for the purpose of establishing and operating programs that provide adult education and literacy activities within the service area of one or more particular counties. Providers will apply for continuing funding under Title II annually and all providers will be subject to the same funding cycle. Providers will function as a required and valued partner in the regional One-Stop Center (also known in Vermont as Career Resource Centers) including as a partner in the development of regionally-relevant career pathways with specific entrance points for lower skilled adults.