Purpose of Program:
The Fostering Diverse Schools Demonstration Grants program provides competitive grants to local educational agencies (LEAs), consortia of LEAs, or one or more LEAs in partnership with a State educational agency (SEA) to provide students with access to a well-rounded education and to improve school conditions for student learning by developing or implementing, and making publicly available as a resource for other LEAs and SEAs, comprehensive plans for increasing school socioeconomic diversity in preschool through grade 12.
Through the Title IV–A Grants for Fostering Diverse Schools Demonstration program, the Department invites LEAs, consortia of LEAs, or one or more LEAs in partnership with a SEA to apply for funding to—(1) develop or enhance a locally tailored comprehensive plan to increase socioeconomic diversity across and within LEAs, schools, and academic programs or courses, as applicable; or (2) implement a locally tailored comprehensive plan to foster socioeconomic diversity across and within districts and schools, and within classrooms, as applicable. The Department seeks to support applicants that promote the use of evidence-based strategies to increase access to high-quality, well-rounded learning experiences, support safe and healthy students by increasing diversity across and within districts, schools, and courses, or both. The Department also seeks to support applicants that demonstrate student, family, educator, and community involvement in the development and implementation of their school diversity plans. In either case, projects supported by this program must complement, rather than duplicate, the ongoing work of the grantee, and funds awarded under this grant must supplement, and not supplant, non-Federal funds that would otherwise be available for activities funded under this program.
The Department expects applicants to submit proposals to develop or implement plans for diversity that are responsive to the significant body of research showing the importance of student diversity in fostering academic achievement. In developing their proposals, applicants should consider strategies to encourage socioeconomic diversity in schools, courses, and programs. Applicants may also propose to voluntarily foster diversity more broadly by considering legally permissible strategies for promoting diversity as it relates to factors such as race/ethnicity, culture, geography, the percentage of English learners, and the percentage of students with disabilities.
Estimated Total Program Funding:
