District of Columbia: Extent to Which Schools Receive Available Federal
Education Grants (Letter Report, 10/09/98, GAO/HEHS-99-1).

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed how well the District
of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) have taken advantage of available
federal education dollars, focusing on the: (1) federal education grant
programs that are available to the District of Columbia; (2) status of
efforts to fully optimize the ability to apply for or receive federal
education grant programs by the District of Columbia; and (3) process
for ensuring timely application for federal education grant programs and
the office that is charged with ensuring the success and the efficiency
of this process.

GAO noted that: (1) DCPS are eligible for 72 of the 103 fiscal year (FY)
1998 federal education grant programs available for preschool,
elementary, and secondary education; (2) in FY 1998, the District of
Columbia accessed 47 of the 72 federal programs available to DCPS; (3)
DCPS did not apply for the remaining 25 programs because it lacked the
resources to pursue these grants, according to DCPS officials; (4) for
example, they said budgetary constraints precluded applying for grants
requiring matching funds, such as Even Start-Migrant Education; (5) they
further stated that DCPS had insufficient staff to apply for some grants
or to implement a grant if received, such as Bilingual
Education-Professional Development; (6) the grant application process
can vary by grant and involves several offices in DCPS and the District
of Columbia government; (7) grant applications can originate in several
DCPS offices but all go through the office of the DCPS Chief Executive
Officer prior to submission to the agencies; (8) grant applications for
the Department of Education's TRIO programs are submitted by the Office
of Postsecondary Research and Assistance of the District of Columbia's
Department of Human Services; and (9) the grant applications for two
educational programs administered by the Department of
Justice--Gang-Free Schools and Communities program and the Juvenile
Mentoring Program--are the responsibility of the Office of Grants
Management and Development in the Office of the Chief Financial Officer
for the District of Columbia government.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  HEHS-99-1
     TITLE:  District of Columbia: Extent to Which Schools Receive 
             Available Federal Education Grants
      DATE:  10/09/98
   SUBJECT:  Educational grants
             Municipal governments
             Federal grants
             Grants to local governments
             Preschool education
             Elementary education
             Secondary education
             Food programs for children
             Eligibility criteria
IDENTIFIER:  Dept. of Education TRIO Program
             District of Columbia
             National School Lunch Program
             Head Start Program
             DOJ Gang Free Schools and Communities Program
             DOJ Juvenile Mentoring Program
             Even Start Migrant Education Grant
             Bilingual Education Professional Development Grant
             
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Cover
================================================================ COVER


Report to the Chairman, Subcommittee on the District of Columbia,
Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, House of
Representatives

October 1998

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - EXTENT TO
WHICH SCHOOLS RECEIVE AVAILABLE
FEDERAL EDUCATION GRANTS

GAO/HEHS-99-1

District of Columbia Education Grants

(104936)


Abbreviations
=============================================================== ABBREV

  CEO - Chief Executive Officer
  CFDA - Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
  CFO - Chief Financial Officer
  DCPS - District of Columbia Public Schools
  LEA - local educational agency
  OIG - Office of Inspector General
  SEA - state educational agency

Letter
=============================================================== LETTER


B-280461

October 9, 1998

The Honorable Tom Davis
Chairman, Subcommittee on the District of Columbia
Committee on Government Reform and Oversight
House of Representatives

Dear Mr.  Chairman: 

The federal government provides funds for hundreds of education
programs of which 103 are available for preschool, elementary, and
secondary education (see app.  I and app.  II).  Most of these are
administered by the Department of Education, although 12 other
agencies also offer such programs.  The biggest of these programs,
outside Education, are the school nutrition programs administered by
the Department of Agriculture and the Head Start program administered
by the Department of Health and Human Services. 

Concern has been voiced in congressional hearings and the press about
how well the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) have taken
advantage of available federal education dollars.  To address this
concern, you asked us to answer three questions.  (1) What federal
education grant programs are available to the District of Columbia? 
(2) What is the status of efforts to fully optimize the ability to
apply for or receive federal education grant programs by the District
of Columbia?  (3) What is the process for ensuring timely application
for federal education grant programs and what office is charged with
ensuring the success and efficiency of this process? 

To answer your questions, we interviewed officials from the District
of Columbia government, DCPS, and the Department of
Education--including the Office of Inspector General (OIG)--and
reviewed supporting documentation, including the Catalog of Federal
Domestic Assistance (CFDA).\1 We compiled the list of federal
education grant programs available for preschool, elementary, and
secondary education through computerized searches of the CFDA. 
Representatives of the federal agencies that administer the programs,
DCPS, and the Office of Grants Management and Development in the
District of Columbia government reviewed the list of federal
education grant programs for accuracy and completeness.  They
indicated which of those programs are available to DCPS.  For the
purpose of our review, we defined accessing federal education grant
programs as efforts by any office to apply for funding for District
of Columbia schools and students.  We conducted our work between May
and July 1998, in accordance with generally accepted government
auditing standards. 


--------------------
\1 The CFDA is a governmentwide compendium of federal programs,
projects, services, and activities that provide assistance or
benefits to the American public.  It contains information on
financial and nonfinancial assistance programs administered by
departments and other establishments of the federal government. 
Because the funds available to the District of Columbia in fiscal
year 1998 came from federal 1997 and 1998 fiscal year appropriations,
we used the 1997 and 1998 CFDA to compile the program list. 


   RESULTS IN BRIEF
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :1

DCPS is eligible for 72 of the 103 fiscal year 1998 federal education
grant programs available for preschool, elementary, and secondary
education.  In fiscal year 1998, the District of Columbia accessed 47
of the 72 federal programs available to DCPS.  DCPS did not apply for
the remaining 25 programs because it lacked the resources to pursue
these grants, according to DCPS officials.  For example, they said
budgetary constraints precluded applying for grants requiring
matching funds, such as Even Start-Migrant Education.  They further
stated that DCPS had insufficient staff to apply for some grants or
to implement a grant if received, such as Bilingual
Education-Professional Development. 

The grant application process can vary by grant and involves several
offices in DCPS and the District of Columbia government.  Grant
applications can originate in several DCPS offices but all go through
the office of the DCPS Chief Executive Officer (CEO) prior to
submission to the agencies.  Grant applications for the Department of
Education's TRIO programs are submitted by the Office of
Postsecondary Education, Research and Assistance of the District of
Columbia's Department of Human Services.\2 The grant applications for
two educational programs administered by the Department of
Justice--Gang-Free Schools and Communities program and the Juvenile
Mentoring Program--are the responsibility of the Office of Grants
Management and Development in the Office of the Chief Financial
Officer (CFO) for the District of Columbia government. 


--------------------
\2 TRIO programs fund activities to encourage and motivate youths
with the potential for postsecondary education to continue in and
graduate from secondary school and to successfully enter and graduate
from college. 


   BACKGROUND
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :2

Because of DCPS' location in the nation's capital, it has a unique
administrative environment.  Washington, D.C., is not located in a
state, so that DCPS, unlike other school districts, does not receive
the oversight and assistance that states often provide.  Therefore,
various administrative activities required by federal grants--such as
oversight and program implementation management--that are frequently
divided between state educational agencies (SEA) and local
educational agencies (LEA), are divided among various offices within
DCPS and the District of Columbia government.\3 Furthermore, recent
organizational changes in both the city and its school system--part
of attempts to improve the management of both entities--have changed
the administration of the schools.  Frequent reorganizations of both
DCPS and the District of Columbia government continue to shift
responsibilities and accountability for grant application and
management within each entity.  Finally, DCPS has one set of
responsibilities not normally assigned to a school district or state
education agency:  It has responsibility for federal nutrition
programs, including those that are not operated in the public
schools, such as the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program. 

Before 1975, the powers of the government of the District of Columbia
were severely limited and the major municipal officials were
appointed by the president.  With the advent of home rule in 1975,
the Congress delegated certain legislative powers to the District of
Columbia government and authorized the election by popular vote of a
mayor and city council.\4 Before 1975, members of the school board
had been elected, and this arrangement was maintained when home rule
went into effect.  Under this system, DCPS reported to the mayor
through the school board. 

In 1995, after years of financial mismanagement and neglect had
resulted in the District of Columbia's inability to provide effective
and efficient services in a number of areas including education, the
Congress passed legislation establishing the District of Columbia
Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority
("Authority").\5 The Authority issued a report entitled "Children in
Crisis:  A Report on the Failure of D.C.  Public Schools" in which it
concluded that the deplorable record of the District of Columbia's
public schools by every important educational and management measure
had left the system in a state of crisis. 

To help address these problems, the Authority ordered a November 1996
restructuring of the DCPS, discharged the Superintendent, redesigned
the position as the Chief Executive Officer/Superintendent, and
delegated the responsibility for managing the District of Columbia's
schools to a newly installed nine-member Emergency Transitional
Education Board of Trustees.  However, on January 6, 1998, the U.S. 
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the
delegation of powers was improper.  As a result, the CEO has the
responsibility of managing the schools. 


--------------------
\3 LEAs are often local school districts and locally controlled,
while SEAs are state agencies with oversight responsibilities for the
various LEAs or school districts in a state. 

\4 The District of Columbia Self-Government and Governmental
Reorganization Act (P.L.  93-198) granted the District of Columbia a
charter effective Jan.  2, 1975. 

\5 The District of Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management
Assistance Act of 1995 (P.L.  104-8).  The Authority is also known as
the Control Board. 


      FEDERAL EDUCATION GRANTS
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :2.1

The federal government lists 103 programs in the CFDA for preschool,
elementary, and secondary education for fiscal year 1998.\6 These are
operated by twelve federal agencies:  the Departments of Education,
Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Health and Human Services, Interior,
Justice, and Labor as well as the Corporation for National and
Community Service, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National
Science Foundation, and the United States Information Agency.  (See
app.  I and app.  II for a list of departments and the programs they
administer.) In fiscal year 1997, these agencies administered an
estimated $36.6 billion for preschool, elementary, and secondary
programs, with four agencies accounting for more than 90 percent of
the funds:  Education (43 percent), Agriculture (24 percent), Health
and Human Services (14 percent), and Labor (13 percent). 

Education funding is distributed to SEAs and LEAs in two forms: 
formula grants and project grants.  Most education programs involve
formula grants.  The bulk of federal funds--such as funds distributed
for the education of the disadvantaged under Title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act--is distributed by formula. 
Project grants--grants that SEAs or LEAs can apply for directly from
the federal agency--constitute a much smaller part of the federal
education pie.  Project grants are funding, for fixed or known
periods, of specific projects or the delivery of specific services or
products without liability for damages for failure to perform.  For
example, 99 percent of the nearly $7.7 billion budgeted for education
for the disadvantaged in fiscal year 1997 was formula grants. 
Similarly, 94 percent of the $4.2 billion budgeted for special
education in fiscal year 1997 was distributed through formula grants. 
However, some funds that are distributed by the federal government to
states by formula are redistributed as project grants by the states
to LEAs or other local entities.  Part A, State Grants for Drug and
Violence Prevention Programs, of the funds distributed under the Safe
and Drug Free Schools Act of 1994 is one example. 

Most federal education grant dollars for preschool, elementary, and
secondary programs are targeted to at-risk students, including those
who are poor or disabled or who have limited English proficiency. 
The number of poor students is determined by the number of children
who apply and qualify for free and reduced-price lunches under the
National School Lunch Program.  Because more than 80 percent of the
District of Columbia's students qualify for free or reduced-price
lunches, the District of Columbia is qualified for most federal
education grants. 

In addition to federal program grant funds that DCPS receives
directly, DCPS receives federal funds indirectly through the federal
contribution to the District of Columbia budget.  The District of
Columbia budget and any funds budgeted for DCPS are subject to
congressional approval under the District of Columbia Financial
Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority Act because of the
fiscal role the federal government plays in the District of Columbia
budget.  For example, in fiscal year 1997, about 35 percent of the
District of Columbia's revenues--$1.6 billion--came from the federal
government, through either operating grants or the federal payment.\7


--------------------
\6 We have defined a program as a funding stream that has a unique
number in the CFDA.  SEAs and LEAs may think about subdivisions of
these funding streams as separate projects; therefore, they may
consider that they have more "programs" than we have enumerated.

Under the Student Loan Marketing Association Reorganization Act of
1996 (which is part of P.L.  104-208), the Authority is authorized to
establish an account to receive the proceeds from privatization of
certain government entities to carry out the District of Columbia
School Reform Act of 1995 (which provides for the development of
plans to repair and improve District of Columbia schools) or to
finance public elementary and secondary school facilities
construction and repair within the District of Columbia. 

\7 The federal payment compensates the District of Columbia for any
unreimbursed services that it may provide the federal government, as
well as revenue losses that may be attributable to the large
percentage of federally owned tax-exempt property in the District of
Columbia, the federally imposed limitations on the height of its
buildings, and the federally imposed limitation on its authority to
tax the income of nonresidents. 


      THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA'S
      TROUBLED GRANT HISTORY
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :2.2

DCPS and the District of Columbia government have a history of
failure in optimizing access to educational grant funds.  For
example, the National Science Foundation revoked a $13.3 million
grant to DCPS in response to its fall 1996 finding that DCPS was not
capable of properly implementing the grant program.  A 1998
Department of Education OIG report found that DCPS does not have
policies and procedures covering all aspects of grant management.  A
self-assessment of grant management in DCPS conducted by KPMG Peat
Marwick for DCPS concluded in a January 1998 report that program
managers do not adequately monitor their programs' financial
activities. 


   DCPS ELIGIBILITY FOR FEDERAL
   PRESCHOOL THROUGH GRADE 12
   EDUCATION PROGRAMS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :3

According to the Department of Education and other responsible
agencies, DCPS is eligible for 72 of 103 federal education programs
targeted to preschool, elementary, and secondary education.  These
programs include those for at-risk students (poor, limited English
proficient, migrant, and disabled), Head Start, school reform, school
nutrition, and technology (see app.  I).  The 31 other programs are
predominantly for selected populations of students, such as Native
Hawaiians, who generally do not reside in the District of Columbia,
or were not openly available for competition in fiscal year 1998. 
(See app.  II.)


   STATUS OF EFFORTS TO OPTIMIZE
   FEDERAL GRANTS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :4

Of the 72 education programs available to the District of Columbia,
it applied for and received funds for 40 grants in fiscal year
1998.\8 The District of Columbia applied for 7 additional programs
but received rejection notices for 2; award decisions are still
pending on the remaining 5 programs.  DCPS did not apply for the 25
other available programs because it lacked the resources to pursue
these grants, according to DCPS officials.  For example, these
officials said that budgetary constraints precluded applying for
grants requiring matching funds, such as Even Start-Migrant
Education, while, for other programs such as Bilingual
Education-Professional Development, they said DCPS had insufficient
staff to prepare and submit grant applications or to implement a
grant if received.  In addition, the director of categorical grants
cited the problem of time constraints that required DCPS to set
priorities on grants to apply for when deadlines caused conflicts. 


--------------------
\8 In testimony on Aug.  26, 1998 (District of Columbia:  Extent to
Which Schools Receive Available Federal Education Grants,
GAO/T-HEHS-98-239), we reported that the District of Columbia had
applied for and received funds for 39 grants.  In information
provided after that hearing, however, DCPS documented that it
received benefits from one additional program. 


   RESPONSIBILITY FOR GRANT
   APPLICATIONS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :5

DCPS may access education program grants through applications
submitted by DCPS, the District of Columbia Department of Human
Services, the District of Columbia Office of Grants Management and
Development, or another agency for which DCPS is a subgrantee.  The
CEO of DCPS signs and submits all grant applications for which DCPS
is the primary grantee.  The DCPS office responsible for
administering the grant award prepares the grant applications for CEO
signature and review.  Applications for the Department of Education's
TRIO programs are prepared by the Office of Postsecondary Education,
Research and Assistance and are submitted through the District of
Columbia's Department of Human Services.  Applications for two other
federal education grants--administered by the Department of
Justice--are the responsibility of the Office of Grants Management
and Development in the Office of the CFO in the District of Columbia
government.\9 DCPS may also access federal education grants by being
a subgrantee or by being part of a consortium.\10

Because of ongoing reorganization in DCPS, the responsibilities for
the grant application process changed during this review and will
continue to change, according to DCPS officials.  For example, before
July 23, 1998, nutrition grant applications went directly from the
Office of Food and Nutrition Programs to the Department of
Agriculture; special education programs and some adult education
programs and vocational education programs went directly to the CEO
from the respective program offices; all other grant applications
went through the Office of Categorical Programs.\11 During our
review, the state director of food and nutrition programs was
replaced and the new acting director of food and nutrition programs
told us that in the future nutrition grants would be going through
her office to the CEO.  See figure 1. 

   Figure 1:  Responsibilities for
   Applying for Federal Education
   Grants as of July 31, 1998

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

\a This office is within the Office of the Chief Financial Officer
(CFO) but would submit any grant applications directly to Justice
without needing the signature of the CFO. 


--------------------
\9 This office has also assumed responsibility for identifying all
federal grant opportunities for the District of Columbia by
monitoring the CFDA and Federal Register notices, according to the
director.  The office forwards appropriate information to the various
DCPS officials, tracks due dates for applications, and sends
reminders to the DCPS offices with responsibility for applications. 
This office also can identify and facilitate opportunities for DCPS
to pursue funds as part of a consortium.  This office has initiated a
database to track grant applications, awards, and rejections. 

\10 DCPS receives funds as a subgrantee to the Los Angeles Unified
School District for the STAR schools program (CFDA 84.203) and as a
subgrantee to the District of Columbia's Department of Employment
Services for the Job Training Partnership Act (CFDA 17.250). 

\11 The director of the Office of Food and Nutrition Programs was the
designated "state director" of food and nutrition programs. 
Department of Agriculture regulations require that funding
applications be signed by the state director. 


   AGENCY COMMENTS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :6

We provided a draft copy of this report to the U.S.  Department of
Education, District of Columbia Public Schools, and District of
Columbia government for review.  Department of Education officials
generally agreed with our findings and provided us with technical
comments on the federal grant programs listed in appendixes I and II. 
We incorporated these comments as appropriate. 

DCPS and the District of Columbia government gave us joint comments,
including an attachment with specific comments on the report and
additional technical information.  Their comments and our detailed
response appear in appendix III.  We made changes in response to this
information as appropriate.  Their primary concern was that the title
of the report did not reflect that they had submitted applications
for more than half of the grant programs available.  Upon receiving
additional supporting information from DCPS, we revised the title of
the report.  They also took issue with the way in which we counted
available programs, stating that such a count should include only
grants for which DCPS is the lead applicant.  We disagree.  From the
outset of our work, we made clear that our objective was to assess
the District of Columbia's overall efforts to apply for federal
education grant resources, not just those for which DCPS was the lead
applicant. 

In addition to comments on the draft report, the DCPS CEO commented
on our findings presented at an August 1998 hearing.  DCPS stated at
the hearing that it would have received only an additional $5 million
if it had successfully applied for all the federal grants it had not
applied for (see app.  I).  You asked us to review the basis for this
$5 million estimate and requested that our findings be incorporated
into this report.  In summary, we found that the $5 million estimate
was at the low end of the potential range, which goes from about $3.4
million to about $21 million.  Our detailed review of the estimate
can be found in appendix IV. 


---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :6.1

We are sending copies of this report to the Secretary of Education,
the Chief Executive Officer of DCPS, the Chief Financial Officer of
the District of Columbia government, appropriate congressional
committees, and others who are interested.  If you wish to discuss
this report, please call me or Eleanor Johnson, Assistant Director,
on (202) 512-7014.  Major contributors included Gene G.  Kuehneman
and Benjamin F.  Jordan, Jr. 

Sincerely yours,

Carlotta C.  Joyner
Director, Education and Employment Issues


FEDERAL EDUCATION GRANT PROGRAMS
AVAILABLE TO DCPS IN FISCAL YEAR
1998
=========================================================== Appendix I

The grant programs in this appendix are ones for which District of
Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) were eligible in fiscal year 1998.  We
have defined a federal program as a funding stream that has a unique
number in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA).\12

Counting the "number of programs" can be confusing, because there is
no one definition of a program that is consistently used by federal
program and budget officials or by state educational agencies (SEA)
and local educational agencies (LEA).  SEAs and LEAs may define as
separate programs subdivisions of these funding streams, which they
view as separate projects.  For example, what we defined as one
funding stream (CFDA 84.048)--Vocational Education-Basic Grants to
States--is counted as seven separate programs on the program list
maintained by Office of Categorical Grants.\13 Therefore the DCPS
count may legitimately differ from ours because we are using
different definitions of "program."

We assembled table I.1 from lists maintained by the DCPS Office of
Categorical Grants, the Office of Grants Management and Development
in the District of Columbia's Office of the Chief Financial Officer
(CFO), and the Department of Education and from discussions with
officials in each federal agency administering preschool, elementary,
and secondary education funds as well as DCPS and District of
Columbia government officials. 



                                    Table I.1
                     
                     The 72 Federal Education Grant Programs
                      Available to DCPS in Fiscal Year 1998

                                                      Application           CFDA
Program                             Grant type\a      status\b            number
----------------------------------  ----------------  ------------------  ------
Department of Education (N = 52)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Adult Education--State Grant        Formula           R                   84.002
Program

Title I Grants to Local             Formula           R                   84.010
Educational Agencies

Migrant Education--Basic State      Formula           R                   84.011
Grant Program

Title I Program for Neglected and   Formula           R                   84.013
Delinquent Children

Special Education--Grants to        Formula           R                   84.027
States

Impact Aid                          Formula           R                   84.041

TRIO--Talent Search                 Project           S/R\c               84.044

TRIO--Upward Bound                  Project           NA                  84.047

Vocational Education--Basic Grants  Formula           R                   84.048
to States

TRIO--Educational Opportunity       Project           NA                  84.066
Centers

Higher Education--TRIO Staff        Project           NA                  84.103
Training Program

Migrant Education--Coordination     Project           NA                  84.144
Program

Immigrant Education                 Formula           R                   84.162

Magnet Schools Assistance           Project           R                   84.165

Special Education--Preschool        Formula           R                   84.173
Grants

Special Education--Grants for       Formula           R                   84.181
Infants and Families with
Disabilities

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and      Project           NA                  84.184
Communities--National Programs

Safe and Drug-Free Schools and      Formula           R                   84.186
Communities--State Grants

Bilingual Education Support         Project           R                   84.194
Services

Bilingual Education--Professional   Project           R                   84.195
Development

Education for Homeless Children     Formula           NA                  84.196
and Youth

STAR Schools                        Project           R                   84.203

Javits Gifted and Talented          Project           NA                  84.206
Students Education Grant

Even Start--State Educational       Formula           R                   84.213
Agencies

Even Start--Migrant Education       Project           NA                  84.214

Fund for the Improvement of         Project           R                   84.215
Education

Capital Expenses                    Formula and       R                   84.216
                                    project

Tech-Prep Education                 Formula and       R                   84.243
                                    project

Minority Teacher Recruitment        Project           NA                  84.262

Goals 2000--State and Local         Formula           R                   84.276
Education Systemic Improvement

School-to-Work Opportunity          Project           S/AP                84.278

Eisenhower Professional             Formula           R                   84.281
Development State Grants

Charter Schools                     Project           R                   84.282

Twenty-first Century Community      Project           S/R                 84.287
Learning Centers

Bilingual Education--Program        Project           S/AP                84.288
Development and Implementation
Grants

Bilingual Education--               Project           S/AP                84.290
Comprehensive School Grants

Bilingual Education--Systemwide     Project           R                   84.291
Improvement Grants

Bilingual Education--Research       Project           NA                  84.292
Programs

Foreign Language Assistance         Project           NA                  84.293

Innovative Education Program        Formula           R                   84.298
Strategies

Technology Innovation Challenge     Project           S/AP                84.303
Grants

Goals 2000: Parental Assistance     Project           NA                  84.310
Program

Even Start--Statewide Family        Project           S/AP                84.314
Literacy Program

Technology Literacy Challenge Fund  Formula           R                   84.318
Grants

Eisenhower Regional Mathematics     Project           NA                  84.319
and Science Education

Special Education--State Program    Project           R\d                 84.323
Improvement Grants for Children
with Disabilities

Special Education--Research and     Project           NA                  84.324
Innovation to Improve Services and
Results for Children with
Disabilities

Special Education--Personnel        Project           R\e                 84.325
Preparation to Improve Services
and Results for Children with
Disabilities

Special Education--Technical        Project           NA                  84.326
Assistance and Dissemination to
Improve Services and Results for
Children with Disabilities

Special Education--Technology and   Project           NA                  84.327
Media Services for Individuals
with Disabilities

Special Education--Studies and      Project           NA                  84.329
Evaluations

Advanced Placement Test Fee         Project           NA                  84.330
Payment Program


Department of Agriculture (N = 8)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Food Distribution                   Formula           R                   10.550

School Breakfast Program            Formula           R                   10.553

National School Lunch Program       Formula           R                   10.555

Special Milk Program for Children   Formula           R                   10.556

Child and Adult Foodcare Program    Formula           R                   10.558

Summer Food Service                 Formula           R                   10.559

State Administrative Expenses for   Formula           R                   10.560
Child Nutrition

Team Nutrition Grants               Project           R                   10.574


Department of Commerce (N = 1)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Telecommunications and Information  Project           NA                  11.552
Infrastructure Assistance Program


Department of Justice (N = 2)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gang-Free Schools and Communities-  Project           NA                  16.544
-Community-Based Gang Intervention

Juvenile Mentoring Program          Project           NA                  16.726


Department of Labor (N = 2)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Employment Services and Job         Project           NA                  17.249
Training (School to Work
Opportunities)

Job Training Partnership Act        Formula           R                   17.250


National Science Foundation (N = 1)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Education and Human Resources\f     Project           NA                  47.076


Environmental Protection Agency (N = 1)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Environmental Education Grants      Project           NA                  66.951


United States Information Agency (N = 1)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Teacher Exchange--New Independent   Project           NA                  82.012
States


Department of Health and Human Services (N = 3)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Head Start                          Formula           R                   93.600

Medicaid\g                          Formula           R                   93.778

Cooperative Agreements to Support   Project           R                   93.938
Comprehensive School Health
Programs to Prevent the Spread of
HIV and Other Important Health
Problems


Corporation for National and Community Service (N = 1)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Learn and Serve America--School     Project           R                   94.004
and Community Based
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\a Formula grants are allocations of money to states or their
subdivisions with a distribution formula prescribed by law or
administrative regulation for activities of a continuing nature not
confined to a specific project.  Project grant funding for fixed or
known periods is for specific projects or products without liability
for damages for failure to perform.  Project grants include
fellowships, scholarships, research grants, training grants,
traineeships, experimental and demonstration grants, evaluation
grants, planning grants, technical assistance grants, survey grants,
construction grants, and unsolicited contractual agreements. 

\b R = received; S/AP = submitted, award pending; S/R = submitted,
rejected; NA = not applied for. 

\c This application was submitted by the District of Columbia Office
of Postsecondary Education, Research and Assistance. 

\d DCPS receives funds under this CFDA number that were initially
awarded under Secondary Education and Transitional Services for Youth
with Disabilities (CFDA 84.158), which is no longer authorized
because of the Individuals with Disabilities Act Amendments of 1997. 

\e DCPS receives under this CFDA number funds that were initially
awarded under Special Education-Personnel Development and Parent
Training (CFDA 84.029), which is no longer authorized because of the
Individuals with Disabilities Act Amendments of 1997. 

\f DCPS was awarded this grant in fiscal year 1995; the National
Science Foundation revoked the grant in fiscal year 1996. 

\g DCPS officials told us that although it is not an education
program, these funds reimburse DCPS for services for the disabled. 


--------------------
\12 We found one other federal funding stream--Junior Reserve
Officers Training Corps, financed by the Department of Defense--that
is accessed by District of Columbia schools but not found in CFDA. 
These grants are applied for by individual schools, not DCPS.  This
program is not included in our analysis. 

\13 VocED Title II Part A, single parents; VocED Title II, Part A,
Adult Post Training; VocED Title II Sex Bias/Stereotyping; VocED
Title II Criminal Offenders Program; VocED Title II State
Administration; VocED Title II State Administration Sex Equity;
Vocational Education-Basic Grants to States. 


FEDERAL EDUCATION GRANT PROGRAMS
NOT AVAILABLE TO DCPS IN FISCAL
YEAR 1998
========================================================== Appendix II

Although the grant programs in this appendix are listed in the CFDA
as education programs, DCPS was not eligible to apply for them. 



                         Table II.1
          
          The 31 Federal Education Grant Programs
            Not Available to DCPS in Fiscal Year
                            1998

                                    Criterio
Program                             n\a       CFDA number
----------------------------------  --------  ------------
Department of Agriculture (N = 2)
----------------------------------------------------------
Cooperative Extension Service       C         10.500

Agricultural Telecommunications     A         10.501
Program


Department of Commerce (N = 2)
----------------------------------------------------------
Independent Education and Science   B         11.449
Projects

Public Telecommunications           D         11.550
Facilities


Department of Interior (N = 1)
----------------------------------------------------------
Indian Education Assistance to      B         15.130
Schools


Department of Justice (N = 2)
----------------------------------------------------------
Desegregation of Public Education   D         16.100

Protection of Voting Rights         D         16.104


Department of Education (N = 21)
----------------------------------------------------------
Civil Rights Training and Advisory  E         84.004
Services

International--Overseas Seminars    D         84.018
Abroad

Higher Education Institutional Aid  A         84.031

Federal Work-Study Program          A         84.033

Federal Perkins Loan Cancellations  A         84.037

Impact Aid Facilities Maintenance   D         84.040

Indian Education Grants to LEAs     B         84.060

Migrant Education High School       A         84.141
Equivalency

Eisenhower Professional             E         84.168
Development--Federal Activities

Byrd Honors Scholarships            A         84.185

Workplace Literacy Partnerships     D         84.198

Native Hawaiian Special Education   B         84.221

Freely Associated States Education  B         84.256
Grant

Even Start--Indian Tribes and       B         84.258
Tribal Organizations

National Early Intervention         E         84.272
Scholarship and Partnership

Telecommunications Demonstration    D         84.286
Project

Bilingual Education--Program        E         84.289
Enhancement Grants

Regional Technical Support and      E         84.302
Professional Development

International Education Exchange    D         84.304

Even Start Family Literacy in       D         84.313
Women's Prisons

State Grants for Incarcerated       D         84.331
Youth Offenders


Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation (N = 1)
----------------------------------------------------------
Christopher Columbus Fellowship     D         85.100
Program


Department of Health and Human Services (N = 2)
----------------------------------------------------------
Job Opportunities and Basic Skills  D         93.561
Training

Child Care for Families at Risk of  D         93.574
Welfare Dependency
----------------------------------------------------------
\a Key to criteria for DCPS ineligibility:
A = for institutions of higher education only;

B = for specific populations who do not generally reside in the
District of Columbia, such as Native Hawaiians;

C = agricultural extension program;

D = targeted for applicants other than SEAs or LEAs, such as a public
or noncommercial educational broadcast station;

E = competitive grant not opened for competition for fiscal year
1998. 




(See figure in printed edition.)Appendix III
COMMENTS FROM THE DISTRICT OF
COLUMBIA
========================================================== Appendix II



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)

See comment 8. 



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)



(See figure in printed edition.)


The following are GAO's comments on the District of Columbia's letter
dated August 13, 1998. 

GAO COMMENTS

1.  While our report was still in draft, the information provided by
the District of Columbia indicated that it had applied for fewer than
half of the available grants.  After receiving a draft of the report
for review and comments, the District of Columbia provided us with
additional grant application and award documentation.  We accordingly
revised the title of the report to reflect this additional
information. 

2.  Our count of the number of grant programs differs from that of
DCPS.  The 39 awards and 10 applications cited by the District of
Columbia in its comments include multiple awards under the same CFDA
number and the Military Science program (Junior Reserve Officers
Training Corps), which is not listed in the CFDA.  As we stated in
our report, we defined a program as a grant program listed in the
CFDA with a unique number.  Accordingly, we counted multiple
applications, awards, and so on for a program with the same CFDA
number as one program in our report.  As for the amount of the
awards, since dollar amounts were outside the scope of this report,
we cannot comment on the information provided.  Accordingly, we
cannot comment on the dollar amount of awards received or grant
applications pending approval, nor did we make any changes to the
report based on this information. 

3.  The District of Columbia states that the dollar amount of the
grants applied for exceeded the amount for which DCPS did not apply. 
We cannot comment on whether the dollar amount of the grants applied
for exceeded the dollar amount of the grants that DCPS did not apply
for since dollar amounts were outside the scope of the audit work for
this report. 

4.  From the start of our review, our definition of available or
eligible grants included all grants from which DCPS could receive
funds, whether it was the primary grantee or a subgrantee in
collaboration with institutions of higher education, other District
of Columbia departments, nonprofit organizations, other SEAs, and
other LEAs.  Accordingly, we considered all such grants as available
to the District of Columbia and DCPS and have identified these as
available in our report. 

5.  We disagree with DCPS' interpretation of our scope.  At no time
did we establish or suggest that our review would be limited to such
awards for which DCPS could take the lead role in applications.  DCPS
currently receives grants as part of a consortium, as part of a team,
and as a subgrantee.  These are listed in appendix I and DCPS'
attachment A. 

6.  We have no comments on the work that DCPS has done in making
strategic grant decisions.  Such activities were outside the scope of
our audit work for this report. 

7.  We have no comments on the negative effect of inadequate staff
capacity to support the dual functions of the SEA and LEA.  The
adequacy of DCPS staff capacity was outside the scope of our audit
work for this report. 

8.  Our count of the number of programs available to DCPS differs
from the numbers included in attachments A, B, and C to its comments. 
The awards and applications listed by the District of Columbia
include multiple awards under the same CFDA number and the Military
Science program (Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps), which is
not listed in the CFDA.  In conducting our analysis, we defined a
program as a grant program listed in the CFDA with a unique number. 
Multiple applications, awards, and so on for a program with the same
CFDA number are counted as one program for our purposes.  In
addition, there are programs absent from DCPS' lists, such as the
National School Lunch Program (CFDA 10.555), and programs that it has
applied for and received funding from in the past, such as the
Education and Human Resources program (CFDA 47.076).  Several of the
Special Education grants listed in attachment C (CFDA 84.028, 84.029,
84.023, 84.026, and 84.159) are programs that are no longer
authorized because of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
Amendments of 1997.  Of these, DCPS has current awards for Special
Education-Personnel Development and Parent Training CFDA 84.029
(currently received as CFDA 84.325).  Attachment C does not list any
of the grant programs sponsored by the Department of Justice, the
Department of Labor, the Environmental Protection Agency, the
National Science Foundation, and the United States Information
Agency.  Our list of available programs has been reviewed and
approved by officials representing each of the federal agencies
sponsoring these programs.  These officials confirmed that all listed
programs were available to DCPS. 

9.  We agree that the District of Columbia told us that it did not
apply for the programs with CFDA numbers 84.044, 84.047, 84.066,
84.168, 84.206, and 84.302 and that it provided a variety of
explanations for not applying for these grant programs.  As to the
eligibility for the programs cited, we relied on the federal agencies
sponsoring the programs to confirm for us whether DCPS is ineligible
to receive or apply for program awards.  Appendix I and appendix II
reflect their judgments.  Specifically, the programs with CFDA
numbers 84.044, 84.047, 84.066, and 84.206 are available to DCPS and,
therefore, appear in appendix I.  The programs with CFDA numbers
84.168 and 84.302 are not available to DCPS and, therefore, appear in
appendix II. 

10.  Similarly, the Department of Education has identified the TRIO
grants (CFDA 84.044, 84.047, and 84.066) as programs for which DCPS
is eligible. 

11.  We agree that several education grants are targeted to specific
groups, such as Native Americans.  These programs are indicated as
such in appendix II. 

12.  We have clarified the text to agree with appendix I, which noted
that the Office of Grants Management and Development had not applied
for these grants. 


DCPS' ESTIMATE OF MAXIMUM FUNDS IT
COULD HAVE RECEIVED BY APPLYING
FOR ALL OTHER AVAILABLE GRANTS
========================================================== Appendix IV

On August 26, 1998, we testified before the Subcommittee on the
extent to which DCPS accessed federal grants in 1998.\14 At the
hearing, DCPS stated that if it had successfully applied for the
grants it had not applied for (see app.  I), it would have received
only an additional $5 million.  You asked us to review the basis for
the $5 million estimate and requested that we incorporate our
findings into this report. 

To that end, we provided DCPS our list of 26 grants not applied for
and asked that it provide supporting information, including the
estimated award amount and the source and assumptions made for each
amount estimated.  This list along with DCPS' estimated award amount
and the source and assumptions made for each amount estimated are
presented in table IV.1.\15

In summary, we found that DCPS' $5 million estimate was at the low
end of the range of potential funds, which is from about $3.4 million
to more than $21 million.  Moreover, DCPS was not consistent in the
criteria it appeared to use in making its estimate.  Because the
chance of successfully securing any grant award varies by grant, we
cannot precisely calculate the amount DCPS would have received if it
had applied for these grants. 



                                        Table IV.1
                         
                         The 25 Federal Education Grant Programs
                         Available to DCPS and Not Applied for in
                           Fiscal Year 1998, Based on the CFDA,
                                        June 1998

                                                        Assumptions   Award range,
                                          DCPS'         for DCPS'     average, and other
                                          estimated     estimated     pertinent
Program       Grant type\a  CFDA number   award         award\b       information\c
------------  ------------  ------------  ------------  ------------  -------------------
Department of Education
(N=18)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRIO--        Project       84.047        Not           Average       Range: $197,649 to
Upward Bound                              eligible\d                  $674,594. Average:
                                          ($330,000)                  $330,363.
                                                                      Mathematics and
                                                                      science awards
                                                                      range: $218,400 to
                                                                      $293,541. Average:
                                                                      $243,741.

TRIO--        Project       84.066        Not           Average       Range: $190,000 to
Educational                               eligible\d                  $761,760. Average:
Opportunity                               ($350,000)                  $350,000.
Centers

Higher        Project       84.103        Not           Average       Range: $90,000 to
Education--                               eligible\d                  $260,000. Average:
TRIO Staff                                ($207,000)                  $207,000.
Training
Program

Migrant       Project       84.144        $30,000       Low           Range: $30,000 to
Education--                                                           $4,500,000. Average
Coordination                                                          not applicable.
Program

Safe and      Project       84.184        $500,000      Unknown       Range and average
Drug-Free                                                             not available.
Schools and
Communities-
-National
Programs

Education     Formula       84.196        $100,000      Based on      Average: $475,000.
for Homeless                                            formula       Range not
Children and                                                          available.
Youth

Javits        Project       84.206        $200,000      Unknown       Range: $150,000 to
Gifted and                                                            $250,000. Average
Talented                                                              not available.
Students
Education
Grant

Even Start-   Project       84.214        $50,000       Unknown       Range: $109,500 to
-Migrant                                                              $270,000. Average:
Education                                                             $230,000.

Minority      Project       84.262        Not           Average       Average: $184,000.
Teacher                                   eligible\d                  Range not
Recruitment                               ($184,000)                  available.

Bilingual     Project       84.292        $60,000       Unknown       Range and average
Education--                                                           not available.
Research
Programs

Foreign       Project       84.293        $52,000       Average       Average: $52,000.
Language                                                              Range not
Assistance                                                            available.

Goals 2000:   Project       84.310        $350,000      Average       Range: $50,000 to
Parental                                                              $500,000. Average:
Assistance                                                            $350,000.
Program

Eisenhower    Project       84.319        $1,500,000    Anticipated   Anticipated amount
Regional                                                amount        of each grant:
Mathematics                                                           $1,500,000.
and Science
Education

Special       Project       84.324        $150,000      Low           Range: $150,000 to
Education--                                                           $300,000. Varies by
Research and                                                          competition.
Innovation
to Improve
Services and
Results for
Children
with
Disabilities

Special       Project       84.326        $150,000      Unknown       Range: $500,000 to
Education--                                                           $4,000,000. Varies
Technical                                                             by competition.
Assistance
and
Disseminatio
n to Improve
Services and
Results for
Children
with
Disabilities

Special       Project       84.327        $150,000      Low           Range: $150,000 to
Education--                                                           $600,000. Varies by
Technology                                                            competition.
and Media
Services for
Individuals
with
Disabilities

Special       Project       84.329        $100,000      Low           Range: $100,000 to
Education--                                                           $1,000,000. Average
Studies and                                                           not available.
Evaluations

Advanced      Project       84.330        $5,000        Unknown       Range: $1,000 to
Placement                                                             $400,000. Average
Test Fee                                                              not available.
Payment
Program


Department of Commerce (N
= 1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Telecommunic  Project       11.552        $200,000      Unknown       Range: $55,517 to $
ations and                                                            652,752. Average:
Information                                                           $380,000
Infrastructu
re
Assistance
Program


Department of Justice (N =
2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gang-Free     Project       16.544        $100,000      Unknown       Range and average
Schools and                                                           not available.
Communities-
-Community-
Based Gang
Intervention

Juvenile      Project       16.726        $50,000       Unknown       Range and average
Mentoring                                                             not available.
Program


Department of Labor (N =
1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Employment    Project       17.249        $100,000      Low           Range: $100,000 to
Services and                                                          $1,750,000. Average
Job Training                                                          not available.
(School to
Work
Opportunitie
s)


National Science
Foundation (N = 1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Education     Project       47.076        $93,000       Average       Range: $7,500 to
and Human                                                             $4,000,000.
Resources\e                                                           Average: $93,500.


Environmental Protection
Agency (N = 1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Environmenta  Project       66.951        $5,000        Unknown       Grants are not to
l Education                                                           exceed $250,000.
Grants                                                                Most are $75,000 or
                                                                      less. Twenty-five
                                                                      percent of funds
                                                                      obligated are for
                                                                      grants of $5,000 or
                                                                      less. Average not
                                                                      applicable.


United States Information
Agency (N = 1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Teacher       Project       82.012        Not           Unknown       Range and average
Exchange--                                eligible\f                  not applicable.
New                                       ($15,000)
Independent
States
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\a Formula grants are allocations of money to states or their
subdivisions with a distribution formula prescribed by law or
administrative regulation for activities of a continuing nature not
confined to a specific project.  Project grant funding for fixed or
known periods is for specific projects or products without liability
for damages for failure to perform.  Project grants include
fellowships, scholarships, research grants, training grants,
traineeships, experimental and demonstration grants, evaluation
grants, planning grants, technical assistance grants, survey grants,
construction grants, and unsolicited contractual agreements. 

\b Although we asked DCPS to provide us with the source and
assumptions that gave rise to its estimates, it provided us only with
the sources.  This column is our analysis based on the information in
the far right column. 

\c CFDA, June 1998. 

\d DCPS states that it is not eligible for this grant program
administered by the Department of Education.  We consider DCPS to be
eligible for this program based on the information and comments
provided us by department officials. 

\e DCPS was awarded this grant in fiscal year 1995; the National
Science Foundation revoked the grant in fiscal year 1996. 

\f DCPS states that it is not eligible for this United States
Information Agency program.  We consider DCPS to be eligible for this
program given information provided by an agency official. 


--------------------
\14 District of Columbia:  Extent to Which Schools Receive Available
Federal Education Grants (GAO/T-HEHS-98-239, Aug.  26, 1998). 

\15 In the course of preparing its estimates, DCPS realized that
George Washington University had applied for and received one of the
grants on the list and that DCPS is benefiting from this grant.  As a
result, we have revised our number of grants applied for from 46 to
47, the number of grants received from 39 to 40, and the number of
grants not applied for from 26 to 25 throughout the report. 


   DCPS STATES THAT VALUE OF
   AWARDS NOT APPLIED FOR AMOUNTS
   TO $5 MILLION
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix IV:1

DCPS estimated that awards for the 25 grants not applied for in
fiscal year 1998 totaled $5,031,000.  In all cases, DCPS identified
the June 1998 CFDA as the source for estimated award amounts. 
However, it did not elaborate on the assumptions it made to estimate
award amounts.  For some grants, the CFDA publishes the lowest and
highest grant sizes available as well as the average grant size.  Our
analysis shows that 8 DCPS award estimates are the average award (or
anticipated grant amount) reported in the CFDA, 5 award estimates are
the minimum award reported in the CFDA, 2 award estimates are below
the minimum award amount reported in the CFDA, and 1 award is based
on the statutory formula.  For the remaining estimates, we could not
determine the basis for the DCPS estimate.  A further implied
assumption in its figures was that only one application was
submitted, even when multiple applications were possible. 


   DCPS' ESTIMATE IS AT LOW END OF
   POTENTIAL RANGE
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix IV:2

While $5 million is within the range of possible amounts, it is on
the low end of this range.  DCPS had to make some assumptions
concerning the amounts applied for and the number of applications
submitted to estimate the amount of grant funds not applied for. 
DCPS implicitly assumed that it would apply for only one grant under
each CFDA number, even if multiple awards were possible.  For the 16
programs for which minimum and maximum grant amounts were given in
the CFDA, the range of possible grants not applied for is $3.4
million to $21 million.  Since there are 9 more programs for which
the CFDA does not provide such estimates, it would be reasonable to
assume that this range would be adjusted upward if the other programs
could be included.  This range could also be adjusted upward for
multiple applications to programs with the same CFDA number. 


   NO PRECISE ESTIMATES ARE
   POSSIBLE USING CFDA AWARD
   INFORMATION
-------------------------------------------------------- Appendix IV:3

Although we can point to 25 grants with unique numbers in the CFDA
that the District of Columbia did not apply for, it is impossible to
estimate precisely how much money this represents using the funding
amounts listed in the CFDA.  In the absence of any further supporting
documentation, we have no basis upon which to evaluate the
assumptions DCPS used to estimate award amounts.  We can, however,
take note of the information on awards available in the CFDA and the
limitations inherent in basing award estimates on this information. 

  -- The funding amounts given are estimates, not necessarily
     reflections of the actual amounts that are available. 

  -- The funding information given differs for each program. 

  -- The amount the District of Columbia would apply for under any
     one grant is unknown. 

  -- The chance of any particular applicant securing a grant varies
     enormously. 


      FUNDING AMOUNTS PROVIDED ARE
      STRICTLY ESTIMATES
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix IV:3.1

The dollar amounts listed in the CFDA as program obligations for the
current and future fiscal years are strictly estimates.  The actual
dollar amounts available for grants vary depending on each program's
budget and on congressional appropriations or amendments.  Some
programs listed as available and funded in the CFDA might have been
eliminated by amendments or have had no funds appropriated.  The
agency responsible for administering a program is the best source for
up-to-date information on the availability and dollar amounts of
funds available.  However, DCPS did not cite the agencies as sources
for its information. 


      FUNDING INFORMATION VARIES
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix IV:3.2

Program descriptions in the CFDA often include both a dollar range
and an average of awards.  These amounts are based on funds awarded
in the past fiscal year and the current fiscal year to date.  Some
programs list total appropriation and number of awards made the
previous year.  Other programs give no figure but indicate that it
varies by competition. 


      SIZE AND NUMBER OF AWARDS
      ARE UNPREDICTABLE
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix IV:3.3

Maximum, minimum, or average award amounts are not necessarily
representative of what DCPS could be expected to apply for.  In
addition, DCPS could apply for multiple awards under the same CFDA
grant number.  Because the amounts applied for can vary widely even
within the same program, it is difficult to speculate on the amount
that DCPS would have applied for and the number of applications DCPS
could have submitted.  For example, DCPS submitted two applications
to the Fund for the Improvement of Education for substantially
different amounts--$1 million and $5 million.  Moreover, some
programs fund a variety of competitive projects within the same
fiscal year.  In these cases, DCPS could submit multiple applications
for the same program in response to different competitions with
different awards available.  For example, the Teacher Enhancement
program and the Instructional Materials Development program available
through the National Science Foundation's Education and Human
Resources grant (CFDA 47.076) both fund a variety of projects. 


      CHANCE OF SECURING A GRANT
      VARIES
------------------------------------------------------ Appendix IV:3.4

DCPS operates as both an SEA and an LEA.  For grant competitions open
to SEAs, it competes with 55 other state entities.  When it competes
with other LEAs, it competes with about 16,000 local entities.  Other
competitions--like those for Safe and Drug Free Schools--may involve
even more entities, such as communities and nonprofit organizations. 
For many of these grants, few applicants get awards.  Only seven
fiscal year 1997 awards were made for the Twenty-first Century
Community Learning Centers program (DCPS' application for fiscal year
1998 was rejected).  However, in other cases, funding is driven by
formulas and is virtually assured.  DCPS has declined to apply for
the formula-based McKinney Act Education for Homeless Children and
Youth program that would have provided $100,000 in fiscal year 1998. 
DCPS also declined to submit a noncompetitive application for funds
from the Advanced Placement Test Fee Payment Program, which would
have provided assistance to poor District of Columbia students taking
the advanced placement exams. 


*** End of document. ***