Title I, Part A - Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged

Title I, Part A (more commonly known simply as "Title I") is a part of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), reauthorized as the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA). Title I is a federally funded program, which provides services to schools based on student economic need. Schools are ranked according to percentage of students receiving free/reduced lunches and are funded in descending order until funds are depleted. Title I is designed to support state and local school reform efforts tied to challenging state academic standards in order to reinforce and enhance efforts to improve teaching and learning for students. Title I programs must be based on effective means of improving student achievement and include strategies to support parent and family engagement.

Title I programs are either schoolwide or targeted assistance. Schools must have a 40% free/reduced lunch count for students to qualify as a Title I school. In Glynn County, nine of ten elementary schools and four middle schools receive Title I, Part A funds to support their schoolwide programs. Additionally, Morningstar, a center for neglected youth located in Glynn County, was assigned a school code in FY08 and receives Title I, Part A funds to support a targeted assistance program. A cooperative agreement between the Glynn County School System and Morningstar ensures quality services for their students delivered in the least restrictive environment. Funds at each facility are used to hire additional personnel to reduce class size and to purchase supplemental instructional and technological materials to help impact student achievement.

Schoolwide programs must have improvement plans which address the following ten components:

1. A comprehensive needs assessment of the entire school

2. Schoolwide reform strategies that provide opportunities for all children to meet the state's rigorous academic standards and that are based on scientifically based research

3. Instruction by highly effective teachers and paraprofessionals

4. High quality, ongoing professional development based on scientifically based research for teachers, principals, paraprofessionals, and other appropriate stakeholders

5. Strategies to attract high-quality, professionally qualified teachers to high-need schools

6. Strategies to increase parent-family involvement and engagement

7. Plans for assisting pre-school children in the transition from early childhood programs to elementary schools, from elementary to middle school, and from middle to high school.

8. Measures to include teachers in decisions regarding the use of academic assessments

9. Timely, effective assistance for students having difficulty mastering the proficient or advanced levels of academic achievement standards

10. Coordination and integration of federal, state, and local services and programs