DPA ESSA Newsletter, Nov 2025

Hello,

The first couple of months of K-12 instruction and residential life have been completed for SY25-26, and we remain committed to serving our students and our schools by providing valuable resources and meaningful technical assistance. School improvement is a never-ending activity that continuously uses student, community, and partnership data to guide next steps and decision-making. In this newsletter, you will find useful updates and new information to help your school continue to grow and develop toward its stated annual SMART goals and subgrant program targets.

We wish you the best of skills and encourage your efforts!

- Casey Sovo, Supervisory Education Program Specialist

DPA Unlocks Greater Funding Flexibility and Speed for BIE-Funded Schools

We are excited to share several significant updates on federal funding that provide BIE-funded schools with more control, flexibility, and faster access to critical resources for the 2025-26 school year. These achievements, facilitated by the Division of Performance and Accountability, are designed to help schools use their federal dollars more strategically to meet the unique needs of their students.

New ESSA Funding Consolidation for SY 2025-26

For the first time, DPA has approved 23 school locations to consolidate their federal funds for the upcoming 2025-26 school year, totaling $19.47 million. This new flexibility allows schools to combine their allocations from Title IA, Title IIA, Title IVA, and Rural and Low-Income Schools into a single, flexible schoolwide fund.

Why this matters: Instead of managing multiple, separate grants with different rules, these schools can now use their resources more cohesively to design and fund comprehensive programs that support their school's specific goals.

This initial group includes:

• 12 Bureau Operated Schools
• 5 Navajo Bureau Operated Schools
• 6 Tribally Controlled Schools (consolidating at the local level)

Building on Fund Transferability Success

This new option builds on the success of the fund transferability option. In SY 2024-25, DPA successfully processed requests for 45 school locations to transfer over $2.68 million. This allowed them to move funds from Title IIA (Supporting Effective Instruction) and/or Title IVA (Student Support & Academic Enrichment Grant) directly into their Title IA (Improving Basic Programs Operated by LEAs) programs, directing resources to their most pressing needs.

A Historic Milestone: Faster Funding for All BIE Schools

DPA has achieved a historic milestone for BIE’s funding process. Starting in SY 2025-26, BIE will now receive all future U.S. Department of Education funding directly through the federal G5 system. This new, direct line of funding ensures faster, more predictable access to resources, allowing all schools to plan and implement student support programs with greater stability and without delay.

• The immediate impact: BIE received 100% of its Every Student Succeeds Act funding, including its full Title IA allocation, directly from the U.S. Department of Education.
• The benefit to you: Because of this change, DPA distributed 100% of the Title IA funds to all BIE-funded schools — the earliest distribution in BIE history.

Title I, Part A provides supplemental funds to help ensure all students meet challenging academic standards. As we enter the second quarter, school leaders should review program implementation, compliance documentation, and progress toward school-wide goals. Reminder: Your school’s first One Plan formative review is due November 30 in Plan4Learning.

Key Reminders

• Parent & Family Engagement: Each school must maintain an updated PFE policy and School-Parent Compact. Compacts should be shared during fall conferences, with agendas, sign-in sheets, and evidence of distribution kept for monitoring.
• Schoolwide Plan (One Plan): Plans must reflect current needs assessments, measurable goals, evidence-based strategies, and evaluation methods. Stakeholder engagement in the planning process must also be documented.

Implementation Priorities

• Data-Driven Interventions: Use fall assessment data to adjust instructional supports before midyear benchmarks.
• Professional Development: Direct PD activities toward evidence-based instructional practices that directly support student achievement.
• Targeted Supports: Prioritize activities with demonstrated impact, such as small-group instruction, extended learning opportunities, and strategic use of instructional technology.

Fiscal Reminders

• Track all expenditures against your approved budget.
• Review allowable cost guidance before obligating funds to ensure compliance.

Please contact Freddy Poitra at the DPA office or your Education Resource Center if you need help.

The BIE Title II Coordinator and WestEd are excited to offer you this seven-part virtual series on how the Nero lens can enhance our leadership capacity.

Ready to transform your leadership through neuroscience? This dynamic virtual series is more than PD. It’s a strategic, job-embedded investment in sustainable school leadership. Each session connects cutting-edge brain science to practical strategies that improve school culture, instructional leadership, and staff wellness. It is designed to build long-term capacity across BIE schools and directly aligns with Title II statutory requirements for sustained, high-quality, and evidence-based professional development.

Why this matters:

• Grounded in real leadership challenges.
• Aligned to BIE’s leadership domains.
• Designed for long-term impact, not one-off training.
• Builds reflective, resilient, and culturally responsive leaders.

From trauma-informed practices to metacognition and educator wellness, this series equips leaders to make smarter, science-aligned decisions that benefit students and staff alike.

We invite schools to share how they are using Title II funds to build leadership capacity, support educator growth, and create a lasting impact in their school communities. Whether it’s through innovative PD, coaching models, leadership pipelines, or wellness initiatives, we would love to showcase you! Please contact Shilo at shilo.krolikowski@bie.edu

The Stronger Connections Grant is utilized in accordance with the school’s approved comprehensive plan application, incorporating evidence-based strategies that support students’ academic, emotional, physical, mental, and overall well-being through an integrated student services program aligned with the Title IV, Part A guidelines. The funds expire September 30, 2026.

The 2022-2023 Annual Performance Report covers recipients’ grant activities from the time they received grant funds to the end of December 2023. Five of the 20 schools received their funds late and had not implemented any grant activities for this period. The next Annual Performance Report will cover grant activities from January 1 to December 31, 2024.

BIE XQ Math Badging Project – Fall Convening at Santa Fe Indian School

The BIE XQ Math Badging Project held its Fall In-Person Convening on September 29–30, 2025, at Santa Fe Indian School in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The event brought together eight teachers and one principal from four schools: Santa Fe Indian School, Cheyenne-Eagle Butte School, Greyhills Academy High School, and Rock Point Community School.

Educators explored strategies for implementing math badging in their classrooms, sharing insights, resources, and best practices to strengthen student engagement and achievement in mathematics. Participants described the convening as a powerful opportunity to collaborate and connect with colleagues across schools.

“The convening was incredibly energizing and affirming," one math teacher said. "I appreciated how the facilitators created space where educators could openly share ideas, ask questions, and feel supported in exploring something new. The resources, collaboration, and real-world connections made the concept of math badging feel both exciting and achievable.”

Following the convening, math badging coursework launched in September 2025, and schools began Collaborative Monthly Teacher Meetings in October 2025 to continue building community and supporting implementation across the network.

Beyond Textbooks Super Conference

The annual Beyond Textbooks Super Conference took place on September 26, 2026, in Tucson, Arizona, at Mica Mountain High School. There were over 60 organizations and 700 conference attendees from across the state. The one-day conference offered over 60 breakout sessions for educators and leaders.

Twelve BIE schools, both Bureau Operated and Tribally Controlled, partnered with Beyond Textbooks for the 2025-2026 school year. The schools that attended the BT Super Conference were Leupp Schools Inc., Nazlini Community School, Little Singer Community School, Hotevilla Bacavi Community School, and Many Farms Community School. These schools receive ongoing support from the Beyond Textbooks team in collaboration with the WestEd team, including the implementation of best practices, instructional strategies, and leadership development.

This past spring, the latest 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) grant competition drew strong interest from across the BIE network, with 90 schools submitting applications to join the new five-year cohort. In August, 48 BIE schools were awarded grants ranging from $115,000 to $240,000, totaling more than $7 million in annual funding.

These new sub-grantees are now launching before-school, after-school, and summer programs that go beyond the classroom — offering academic enrichment, cultural and language revitalization, and community-based learning experiences.

Pictured here, students at Navajo Preparatory School explore Diné Material Arts through their 21st CCLC program — an inspiring example of how these grants support culturally grounded, hands-on learning. Their work underscores the lasting value of investing in extended learning opportunities for our BIE students and community.

For more information, contact your BIE 21st CCLC State Coordinator, Sarah Price, at sarah.price@bie.edu or 505-895-2864.

The purpose of the Comprehensive Literacy State Development discretionary grant is to create a comprehensive literacy program to advance literacy skills — including pre-literacy skills, reading, and writing — for students from birth through grade 12, including limited-English-proficient students and students with disabilities.

As the holidays approach, let’s wrap our students and families in care and connection; each act of kindness and check-in builds the stability they need to thrive. Rooted in our Native teachings, gratitude is a way of life. When school feels safe and welcoming, students know they belong and that the school will always be there for them.

Attendance Through the Holidays: Supporting Students Experiencing Homelessness

The holiday season can bring transitions that impact attendance, such as changes in housing, transportation, or family stress. November is a good time to remind our school communities that every day counts and that consistency builds stability for students in transition.

Strategies to Support Attendance

1. Create a Sense of Belonging Before the Break

• Encourage teachers to send postcards or notes to students who may not have stable housing.
• Use morning announcements or flyers with messages like: “We’re thankful when you’re here!” or “Your presence matters."

• Coordinate with dorms, bus drivers, shelters, and community liaisons to address transportation gaps and ensure routes and weekend plans are in place before school breaks.
• Conduct brief attendance check-ins, by call or text, for high-risk students before and after each break to help maintain consistent engagement.

• Work with tribal programs, food banks, or churches to connect families to meal baskets or coat drives.
• Recognize attendance improvements through community-based incentives such as “Gratitude Shout-Outs” or “Perfect Week” recognitions.

• Track early warning signs of absenteeism.
• Build relationships: Pair students with mentors or “attendance buddies.”
• Celebrate small wins: Recognize every improvement.

Spotlight Idea: “Home for the Holidays” Resource Table

Create a visible resource table near the front office or cafeteria with information about:

• Local shelters and housing contacts
• Free meal or coat distribution events
• Transportation supports
• McKinney-Vento liaison contact information

This small act increases awareness, strengthens outreach, and reminds families that the school community cares.

Contact Marie Silverhatband from the DPA office for assistance.

• Consolidation & Coordination of Federal Grants
• Allowable Use of Funds
• Allowable Activities

To help prepare for your school’s 2025-2026 BIE One Plan, please see this compiled list of on-demand training topics and recordings designed to help teams maximize their time and resources.