Adult Education and Family Literacy Act

Adult Education and Family Literacy Act Corrections Education (Closed)

The federally funded Adult Education and Family Literacy Act was reauthorized as Title ll of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act in July 2014. The federal program provides formula funding to state agencies that distribute funds as grants to local adult education programs. Allowable services include adult basic and secondary education and English language acquisition in many contexts: foundational literacy, high school equivalency, family literacy, integrated English literacy and civics education, workforce preparation, workplace education, and integrated education and training.

The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) Office of Adult Education Initiatives (AEI) is soliciting applications from eligible providers of Corrections Education (CE) within Colorado to develop, implement, and improve adult education and literacy activities within Colorado by establishing or operating programs that provide adult basic education, adult secondary education, or English language acquisition instruction for adult criminal offenders in correctional institutions, for adults in community-based rehabilitation facility or halfway house, or for adults in any other medical or special institution. As is allowable according to WIOA § 222(a)(1), AEI will set aside 20% (roughly $1.5 million) of the available AEFLA funds (not including available Integrated English Literacy and Civics Education funds) for corrections education to provide adult education and literacy services.

CDE anticipates awarding grants for a four-year period. The first year of the corrections education grant is 9 months. The anticipated award period for this grant opportunity is October 2024 through June 2028. Funding in subsequent years for grantees is contingent upon continued federal appropriations and upon grantees meeting all grant, fiscal and reporting requirements.

Note: Applicants must demonstrate a match of 35% of the funds requested.

Unit: Adult Education Initiatives

View the Video Recording of Slide Presentation delivered to Local Workforce Centers to promote CE Funding Opportunity.

Timeline

*Timeline updated 8/20/2024

RFA Release Date: Tuesday, June 25, 2024
Intent to Apply: July 15 to 26, 2024 at 12 p.m. MT
- Required for all potential applicants. Completing this form does not obligate an organization to apply. Contact information from the Intent to Apply form will be used provide access to CDE's Grants Administration and Navigation System (GAINS).
GAINS Technical Assistance Webinar: Wednesday, July 17, 2024, from 1 to 2 p.m. MT
- Recording available
- Presentation available
Demonstrated Effectiveness Application Open in GAINS: Monday, July 29, 2024
Demonstrated Effectiveness Application Due in GAINS: ~~Friday, Aug. 9~~ Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, by 12 p.m. MT
Demonstrated Effectiveness Notifications Sent: ~~Monday, Aug. 12~~ Friday, Sept. 6, 2024
Narrative Application Open in GAINS to Eligible Applicants: Monday, Aug. 12, 2024
Narrative Application Due in GAINS: ~~Thursday, Sept. 5~~ Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024, by ~~11:59~~ 12 p.m. MT
Application Review Period: ~~Sept. 9 to 20~~ Sept. 30 - Oct. 4, 2024
Notice of Preliminary Award Status: ~~Monday, Sept. 30~~ Monday, Oct. 14, 2024
Grant Application FAQ - Responses will be posted weekly on Thursdays by 6 p.m. MT
- Submit questions about the grant application to the AEI Office
- View responses to questions about the grant application submitted to the AEI Office.

Application Submission Process

The AEFLA Corrections Education competition is being run through CDE’s Grant Administration Implementation and Navigation System (GAINS). The Intent to Apply form will be used to provide access to GAINS to complete the two-part online application.

Part One: GAINS Demonstrated Effectiveness Application (accessible to all applicants)
Part Two: GAINS AEFLA Corrections Education Narrative Application (accessible to eligible applicants only)

The Demonstrated Effectiveness application is used to confirm eligibility. Only applicants whose eligibility is confirmed will be eligible to proceed to part two and submit a Narrative Application that may be moved on for scoring consideration if the application is complete.

Full details of the review and scoring processes, funding decisions, and appeals process are available in the AEFLA CE RFA and Narrative Application Planning Document.

Application Planning Documents

The AEFLA CE competition will be run through GAINS. The documents provided are for planning and review purposes only and will not be submitted in GAINS. AEI suggests using the AEFLA CE Narrative Application Planning Document to prepare narrative responses in advance and then copy and paste them into GAINS. Please pay attention to word limits stated in the Narrative Planning Document.

AEFLA CE RFA and Narrative Application Planning Document (Word) Updated ~~7-10-23~~ ~~8-20-24~~ 9-10-24
- This document will not be submitted as the application. All applications will be completed in GAINS.
PY 24-25 AEFLA Budget Worksheet (Excel, updated 07/02/24 to reflect 35% match)
- Budgets will be completed in GAINS.
AEFLA Assurances
- Review each assurance before applying for the grant to ensure you will be able to meet all grant requirements. Assurances are required unless otherwise stated. If funded, applicants will be required to complete and sign each assurance via DocuSign.

PY 24-25 Accessible Design Assurances (Word)
PY 24-25 Assessment Assurances (Word)
PY 24-25 Attendance Assurances (Word)
PY 24-25 Conflict of Interest Assurances (Word)
PY 24-25 Data Assurances (Word)
- PY 24-25 Sample Student Intake Form (Word)

PY 24-25 Distance Education Assurances (If applicable; Word)
PY 24-25 Fiscal Assurances (Word)
PY 24-25 General Assurances (Word)
PY 24-25 Professional Learning Assurances (Word)
PY 24-25 Transition Planning Assurances (Word)

Resources

PY 24-25 Colorado Assessment Policy (Word)
PY 24-25 Distance Education Policy (Word)
PY 24-25 AEI Approved Distance Education Platforms
Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act
WIOA Shared Infrastructure Funding Costs (Webinar)
- Colorado Infrastructure Funding State Formula and Attachments (WIOA-2016-03)
- Colorado Infrastructure Funding Local Negotiations and Attachments (WIOA-2017-07)
College and Career Readiness Standards
English Language Proficiency Standards

Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (Closed)

The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) Office of Adult Education Initiatives (AEI) solicited applications from eligible providers within Colorado to develop, implement, and improve adult education and literacy activities within Colorado by establishing or operating programs that provide a comprehensive service model for adult education and literacy services and instruction, including programs that provide such activities concurrently.

Approximately $7.7 million is estimated to be available for adult education and literacy services under AEFLA (WIOA § 222(a)(1)) for the 2024-2025 fiscal year (July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025), with funding contingent on federal appropriations. As is allowable according to WIOA § 222(a)(1), AEI will set aside 20% (roughly $1.5 million) of the available AEFLA funds (not including available Integrated English Literacy and Civics Education funds) for corrections education to provide adult education and literacy services, leaving approximately $5.1 million general AEFLA funds available for awards through the competitive grant application process in the 2024-2025 fiscal year (July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025). Of this $5.1 million, approximately $1.1 million is estimated to be available specifically for Integrated English Literacy and Civics Education (IELCE) services for the 2024-2025 fiscal year (WIOA §243(a)).

CDE anticipates awarding grants for a four-year period. Funding in subsequent years for grantees is contingent upon continued federal appropriations and upon grantees meeting all grant, fiscal and reporting requirements.

Note: Applicants must demonstrate a match of 35% of the funds requested.

Unit: Adult Education Initiatives

Timeline

RFA Release Date: Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024
Intent to Apply: February 22 to March 7, 2024 at 12 p.m. MT
- Required for all potential applicants. Completing this form does not obligate an organization to apply. Contact information from the Intent to Apply form will be used provide access to CDE's Grants Administration and Navigation System (GAINS).
GAINS Technical Assistance Webinar: Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. MT
- Watch the recording (mp4)
- View the presentation (PDF)
Demonstrated Effectiveness Application Open in GAINS: Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024
Demonstrated Effectiveness Application Due in GAINS: Thursday, March 14, 2024, by 12 p.m. MT (updated 02-22-24)
Demonstrated Effectiveness Notifications Sent: Monday, March 18, 2024 (updated 02-22-24)
Narrative Application Open in GAINS to Eligible Applicants: Monday, March 18, 2024 (updated 02-22-24)
Narrative Application Due in GAINS: Wednesday, May 1, 2024, by 11:59 p.m. MT (updated 04-30-24)
Application Review Period: May 6 to May 31, 2024
Notice of Preliminary Award Status: Monday, June 3, 2024
Grant Application FAQ
- Q&A form is now closed.
- View responses to questions about the grant application submitted to the AEI Office.

Application Submission Process

The AEFLA competition is being run through CDE’s Grant Administration Implementation and Navigation System (GAINS). The Intent to Apply form will be used to provide access to GAINS to complete the two-part online application.

Part One: GAINS Demonstrated Effectiveness Application (accessible to all applicants)
Part Two: GAINS AEFLA Narrative Application (accessible to eligible applicants only)

The Demonstrated Effectiveness application is used to confirm eligibility. Only applicants whose eligibility is confirmed in the relevant proposed service type(s) will be eligible to proceed to part two and submit a Narrative Application that may be moved on for scoring consideration if the application is complete.

Full details of the review and scoring processes, funding decisions, and appeals process are available in the AEFLA RFA and Narrative Application Planning Document (linked below).

Application Planning Documents

The AEFLA competition will be run through GAINS. The documents linked below are for planning and review purposes only and will not be submitted in GAINS. AEI suggests using the AEFLA Narrative Application Planning Document to prepare narrative responses in advance and then copy and paste them into GAINS.

AEFLA RFA and Narrative Application Planning Document (Word, Updated 03-06-24)
- This document will not be submitted as the application. All applications will be completed in GAINS.
PY 24-25 AEFLA Budget Worksheet (Excel)
PY 24-25 IELCE Budget Worksheet (If applicable; Excel)
AEFLA Assurances
- Review each assurance before applying for the grant to ensure you will be able to meet all grant requirements. Assurances are required unless otherwise stated. If funded, applicants will be required to complete and sign each assurance via DocuSign.