Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 12, March 20, 2024
(a)
Scope of section. The purpose of this section is to establish standards for the
best possible use of funds made available by the Legislature to provide
financial assistance to not-for- profit organizations for the operation of
adult literacy education programs including adult basic education, English for
speakers of other languages, and high school equivalency programs.
(b) Definitions.
(1) As used in this section, not-for-profit
organization means a two-year college, four-year college or university,
community-based organization, library or volunteer literacy organization, and
other institutions organized on a not-for-profit basis which operates an adult
literacy education program that meet quality standards promulgated by the
commissioner.
(2) As used in this
section, economically disadvantaged means persons who are unemployed, or who
are eligible for public assistance from a State or Federal agency or who
receive or are eligible to receive food stamps, or who meet income levels
commonly associated with poverty, and who are only able to obtain employment
that sustains them at poverty level.
(3) As used in this section, educationally
disadvantaged refers to persons who have an educational level below the fifth
grade, or below admission standards required of government- sponsored entry
level training programs, or have an extremely limited ability to understand and
speak English.
(c)
Applications. Each not-for-profit organization applying for a grant under this
section shall submit a formal request on forms provided by the department. Such
requests shall be submitted not later than June 1st of each year for programs
to be conducted during the following school year, except that for programs to
be conducted during the 1988-89 school year only, not- for-profit organizations
shall submit such requests by a date to be prescribed by the commissioner. The
commissioner may grant a variance from this time limit upon a finding that
there are extraordinary circumstances which justify the delay in submitting a
request. The application shall set forth the following information with respect
to each program for which a grant is requested:
(1) a description of any existing adult basic
education program operated by the not-for- profit organization, and a
projection of the number of adults who are 16 years of age and not enrolled in
a regular school program to be served by the program;
(2) a description of the proposed program,
including:
(i) the qualifications of the
full- or part-time professional and auxiliary staff;
(ii) the facilities to be used, the equipment
and materials to be provided;
(iii)
the manner in which the program is to be administered and supervised;
(iv) the number of hours of classroom
instruction to be provided; and
(v)
the planned enrollment of students in the program;
(3) the proposed budget for the program,
indicating in detail the manner in which funds are expected to be received and
disbursed, including all funds used in connection with this section whether
appropriated by the State Legislature to carry out the purposes of this
program, or otherwise provided by the not-for-profit organization
itself;
(4) a description of any
formal or informal arrangements that have been made with local social services
districts to serve public assistance recipients; and
(5) any other information required by the
department relative to the planning, administration, funding or evaluation of
the program.
(d)
Approval of application. Each not-for-profit organization applying for a grant
under this section will be notified by the department, within a reasonable
period of time after the receipt of its application, of the commissioner's
approval or disapproval of its application in accordance with this subdivision.
(1) Program approval. No program application
shall be approved unless such application meets the requirements of subdivision
(c) of this section and the proposed program meets the criteria set forth in
section
168.3(b)
of this Title, except that the criteria set forth in section
168.3(b)(5) and
(6) shall not apply to such
program.
(2) Priority in award of
grants. In awarding grants to not-for-profit organizations priority shall be
given to those organizations which propose to serve persons who are receiving
public assistance, who are unemployed, or who are economically or educationally
disadvantaged.
(e) Use
of funds.
(1) A not-for-profit organization
may use grant funds to:
(i) operate an adult
basic education program for public assistance recipients, or other persons who
are educationally or economically disadvantaged, including but not limited to
an English-for-speakers-of-other-languages program, high school equivalency
program, life skills program, or a program leading to a secondary credential
which employs nontraditional modes of instruction, as defined in section
168.2(d)
of this Title; or
(ii) match
existing local funds for purposes of operating an adult basic education program
for public assistance recipients or other persons who are educationally or
economically disadvantaged.
(2) Payment of all or any part of a grant may
be suspended or terminated by the commissioner if the not-for-profit
organization fails to comply with the provisions of the Education Law, with
this section, or with any other applicable law or regulations; or if the
commissioner finds that the not-for-profit organization is not implementing or
administering the program in a satisfactory manner or is failing substantially
to effectuate the purpose of the grant.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be
construed to prevent the use of funds obtained from other sources in the
planning, execution or evaluation of programs.
(f) Facilities. Not-for-profit organizations
may use a portion of their grant to rent facilities deemed essential to achieve
the objectives of the program.
(g)
Supervision and evaluation.
(1) All projects
for which funds are allocated pursuant to this section shall be subject to the
general supervision of the commissioner, who shall have the right to examine
the facilities, operation and records relating to such program at any
time.
(2) Individual records shall
be maintained for each adult participating in any such program, including
attendance, an assessment of the success of the program with respect to the
pupil, and other pertinent information.
(3) Financial records shall be maintained,
and a report of expenditures submitted to the department no later than July
31st next following the close of each school year for which a grant is
awarded.
(4) Not-for-profit
organizations shall submit a report to the department by February 15th of each
school year and a final report by August 15th next following the close of each
school year beginning August 15, 1989. Such reports shall be in a form
prescribed by the commissioner and shall include, but not be limited to, the
number of participants served by age, by various indicators of achievement, and
by services received. Each not-for-profit organization shall submit such
additional reports as may be required by the commissioner.
