16+ SAMPLE Low-Performing Block Grant Plan

What is a Low-Performing Block Grant Plan?

A low-performing block grant plan is a clear and systematic document that comprises effective strategy goals, objectives, and actions that must be implemented on how to spend the block grant properly. Government agencies and institutions provide block grants to low-performing schools to help them receive funds to upgrade their academic performance level, especially to assist low-performing students in their studies. Academic program managers, educators, and professors develop this plan to carry out an intervention program for the students in specific curriculum areas or subjects like math and language arts to facilitate further academic development and achievement. 

Based on a report published by the US Department of Education (DOE), low-performing schools in their state are in the bottom 10%. Some students in low-performing school districts show an increase in academic achievement gaps despite the schools having large student populations with low-income backgrounds. That’s why some government agencies and institutions offer block grants for low-performing schools to fund them and improve their academic programs and learning systems. All kinds of academic managers and professionals like academic project supervisors, educators, and other key individuals and government agencies that can fund low-performing schools should be proficient and skilled in creating a compelling and well-detailed low-performing block grant plan.

Different Types of Low-Performing Block Grant Plans

Some studies have shown that gender, perceived social support, and status assessment indicates a prediction of a 15% academic success rate. These factors are crucial for academic success, especially in elevating the academic performance level of a school, college, or university. What are the different types of low-performing block grant plans?

1. Low-Performing Students Block Grant Plan

Low-performing students block grant plan is a structured action plan to give funds to help students who are classified as low-performing in some major curriculum areas such as English language arts, Science, and Mathematics, or for those who are eligible for special education services. The plan contains the core goals, objectives, and vision to increase or improve the services of the schools so that they can focus on student achievement. Also, it outlines the details of how it will support supplemental instructional materials to facilitate teacher professional development and direct support for students. Other than this, it explains the recommended strategies that they will implement to assess the needs of low-performing students.

2. Community Services Block Grant Plan

This plan is a type of low-performing block grant plan for communities with major goals and objectives to strengthen their capabilities for planning and coordinating the use of an extensive range of federal, state, local, and other assistance, and to support the needs of low-income families and individuals so that they can achieve self-sufficiency. Some local departments and states create a community action plan for block grants to outline their fundamental goals, objectives, and strategies in utilizing several block grants. Other common goals included in this plan are the use of innovative community-based approaches to conquer the causes and effects of poverty and community breakdown, and the expansion of the resource base of programs meant for poverty elimination.

3. Low-Performing Block Grant Plan School District Plan

Creating a well-coordinated low-performing block grant plan school district plan is beneficial to initiate the provision of grant funds to local educational agencies to serve low-performing students. Typically, a school district prepares this plan as they explain how the funds will significantly enhance their academic services to accelerate academic achievement and measure the effectiveness and quality of the services. It outlines the background, funding criteria, and school district allocation, as well as the eligible activities that will be carried out like professional development activities and additional support for the students.

4. Charter School Low-Performing Students Block Grant Plan

Develop a charter school low-performing students block grant plan to elaborate on how the funds will be used to reform their academic services. A charter school or county office of education writes this plan to discuss the fundamental measures that will be implemented to support student academic achievement for low-performing students. This plan should be aligned with the goal of their Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP).

Basic Components of a Low-Performing Block Grant Plan 

A low-performing block grant plan has different kinds of components. Include the following elements for you to create a professional roadmap for your block grant:

Background: Write the background of your low-performing block grant plan which includes purpose, goals, and objectives in providing funds to assess the needs of low-performing students. Table of Contents: Design a clear outline of your low-performing block grant plan when you arrange the core sections and headings, subsections, and subheadings, as well as the pages of the contents of the plan. Professional Development Activities and Services for Academic Improvement Methodology: Outline the activities and services on how the funds will increase or level up the academic services. Add the instructional materials and other learning methods that will be adopted, as well as the academic quality control activities, academic process quality standards, and other tasks. Description of the Effectiveness of the New Academic Services: Describe the effectiveness and outcome of the newly improved academic services, resources, and tools. Explain how they are being evaluated and measured to monitor school progress and student achievement. Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Goals: Identify how the new academic services and programs are aligned in their school district’s local control and accountability plan (LCAP) goals. For example, indicate that the new academic services from the funds of the block grant will provide all students with the necessary digital tools to access additional resources for their academic growth and success. Budget for Low-Performing School Block Grant Funds: Construct a simple table or diagram of the overall budget for the funds. Sum up all the expenditures of the new academic program that will be funded. Conclusion/Summary: Write a brief and cohesive summary of the main points of your low-performing block grant plan. Then, point out the value of the key points of your block grant plan.

How to Write a Low-Performing Block Grant Plan

Denis Waitley said: “The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them.” It is essential for managers and key professionals in school districts and other educational institutions to define the goals, objectives, and desired outcomes of their block grant plans to fully help low-performing schools and students. What are the crucial steps you need to do when writing a clear and structured low-performing block grant plan?

1. Specify Goals and Objectives

What are your specific low-performing block grant goals and objectives? Indicate in your plan that it focuses on offering grant funds to low-performing academies and schools that also have low-performing students. Maintain clarity and simplicity while describing your major goals and objectives. Avoid using complex words and phrases.

2. Develop Effective Methods and Strategies

Next, develop the crucial methods and strategies for your low-performing block grant plan. Outline the fundamental processes in the implementation of the block grant plan in an organized manner. Tell the readers of your plan on how the funds will be used in holding major classes to provide the low-performing students a great opportunity to receive assistance on their assignments. Add other support for the students that you will execute for the improvement of their academic performance.

3. Explain the Effectiveness of the New Academic Program Services

Describe in your low-performing block grant plan how your team will measure the effectiveness of the new academic program services that will be implemented. For example, detail in your plan how the teachers and other educators will monitor the progress of the student and how they will collect necessary data on students who have access to the newly-improved academic curriculum services. Also, incorporate the planned academic services that align with their school district’s local control and accountability plan goals such as giving professional development opportunities for school administrators, teachers, and support staff.

4. Construct a Table for the Academic Program Budget for Low-Performing School Block Grant Funds

Draw a simple table that displays the major details of the program budget for low-performing school block grant funds. Indicate the expenditures in professional development, online learning support, and other additional support for the past and current academic years. Add the annual totals and grand total of the budget for the funds.

5. Proofread and Finalize the Low-Performing Block Grant Plan

Check your entire low-performing block grant plan and make sure that you fully showcase all the essential points in your plan. It must highlight the link between the low-performing block grant goals, objectives, resources, strategies and methods, and activities implemented for the fulfillment of the objective in the plan. Edit and revise the document as soon as possible if you realize that you overlook some sections that need sufficient components.

FAQs

What are the basic components of a low-performing block grant plan?

The basic components that should be included in a low-performing block grant plan are a simple background overview, goals and objectives, outcomes, resources, strategies and methods, activities and tasks, and a budget for the funds.

What is academic poor performance?

Academic poor performance is when a student fails to reach a specific standard or academic performance in a given balanced assessment or evaluation. 

What factors affect low academic performance?

Some of the factors that affect low academic performance are family background, teacher-student ratio, difficulty in comprehension, distracting learning environment, academic performance pressure, information overload, and stressful, unhealthy lifestyle.

Do students in charter schools have greater academic achievements?

Not all students in charter schools attain greater academic achievements. Charter schools may appear to do better as they control and manage the types of students they select to provide unique ways of instructional learning.

How to help students with low performance?

It is important to give instant and continuous feedback and guide them in personalized learning that fits their needs. Associate the lessons with the real world and add movement in the classroom. Use leading questions and end with supplemental questions. Ask students how they want to learn and what specific areas they want to progress more.

What is the impact of a school board on school performance?

A school board aims at the work of its school districts. They assist their local school board members as they hold some board meetings to shape their state-level goals, budgets, policies, and systems that impact the academic performance of the school.

How to address a student achievement gap?

When addressing a student achievement gap, you need to establish benchmarks and monitor progress, guide students for self-reflection, maintain open-mindedness, build relationships with parents, start incorporating culturally relevant texts and topics, and personalize learning according to the personal needs of the student.

What is the importance of a low-performing block grant?

A low-performing block grant is important to support curriculum areas on campus on the daily basis. It is used to offer funds to help schools and educational institutions in improving their academic programs to serve low-performing students on various assessments.

What is the difference between block grants and categorical grants?

Block grants are more extensive in scope than categorical grants, and they also have fewer federal funding requirements. These grants hold specific substantive goals and objectives and allow recipients to identify certain activities funded within the areas of the academic program. On the other hand, categorical grants are grants provided to states from the federal government with specific purposes.

What are the pros and cons of block grants?

The pros of block grants are these grants provide financial assistance to some low-performing schools and students. While the cons are that money can be used inefficiently.

Creating a well-integrated low-performing block grant plan is an essential method to outline the key points of your new alternative educational programs to assess the needs of low-performing schools and students and to increase academic progress and student achievement. We have included several low-performing block grant plan samples that you can easily use in your work such as low-performing block grant plans for beginners, low-performing block grant implementation plans, printable low-performing block grant plans, and low-performing block grant plans for high school.