Grant Details

Authorized under Title IV, Part B, of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015, to provide opportunities for communities to establish or expand activities in community learning centers that—

• Provide opportunities for academic enrichment, including providing tutorial services to help students, particularly students who attend low-performing schools, to meet the challenging State academic standards. The 21st CCLC program supports the creation of community learning centers that provide safe learning environments for students during non-school hours particularly students who attend high poverty and low-performing schools. Centers provide a range of services to support student learning and personal development. These services include, but are not limited to, tutoring and mentoring, homework assistance, academic enrichment (such as hands-on science or technology programs) community service opportunities, music, arts education, health education, cultural activities, and physical activity including sports. Activities need to be engaging as well as effective to ensure active student participation.
• Offer students a broad array of additional services, programs, and activities, such as youth development activities, service learning, nutrition and health education, drug and violence prevention programs, counseling programs, arts, music, physical fitness and wellness programs, technology education programs, financial literacy programs, environmental literacy programs, mathematics, science, career and technical programs, internship or apprenticeship programs, and other ties to an in-demand industry sector or occupation for high school students that are designed to reinforce and complement the regular academic program of participating students The program should be designed to improve academic achievement and to engage students in quality enrichment opportunities. For students who have not been successful in the regular day school, more of the same is not likely to produce success. In general, enrichment activities are multi-disciplinary whereby the student must use academic skills from multiple subject areas learned during the school day. Enrichment activities should also broaden students' experiences by including the arts, recreation, health, and cultural activities.
• Offer families of students served by community learning centers opportunities for active and meaningful engagement in their children's education, including opportunities for literacy and related educational development. 21st CCLC programs must also offer families of participating students educational and personal development opportunities, particularly in the area of literacy and math. Effective 21st CCLC programs sponsor parent engagement opportunities designed to support a child's academic and social development that are different and more frequent than have been traditionally offered by the regular school day program.

The State must give priority to applications proposing to primarily serve students who attend schools eligible for Title I, Part A schoolwide programs.

Competitive Priorities include:

• Joint Applicants: Applications that are submitted jointly between at least one LEA/PSU receiving funds under Title I, Part A and at least one public or private community organizations, city or county governmental agency, faith-based organizations, Bureau of Indian Education, higher education institution, or for-profit corporation.
• CSI/TSI Feeder School Designation: Applications that propose that all schools to be served are identified as Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) Schools or propose to serve a combination of Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) and Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI) schools.
• Chronic Absenteeism - 2023 NC School Report Card Data for Proposed Feeder Schools: Applications intending to serve students from proposed feed schools with greater rates of chronic absenteeism in their school environment compared to the State of North Carolina.
• County Distress Ranking (Tiers): Applicants proposing to serve a majority of proposed feed schools located in a distressed county based on the NC Department of Commerce 2024 County Distress Rankings.
• Unserved Counties: Applications proposing to run site(s) in a county that has not hosted a 21st CCLC program site in the last 3 grant cycles.