Title I District Coordinator Support

Tips for Title I Coordinators

1. Review your district’s most recent Title I consolidated application in WebGrants and supporting materials (Title I narrative, needs assessment, budget, etc.). 
2. Review the accountability data found on the INSIGHTS dashboard for your district and its schools for the most recent year.
3. Visit your Title I schools often to become familiar with their needs assessment, improvement plans, schoolwide plan, procedures for student selection in a targeted assistance program, a method for providing services, and family engagement activities.
4. Visit any nonpublic schools that may be participating in the Title I program and any local institutions or homes receiving Title I funds for neglected and delinquent youth. Familiarize yourself with the services being provided by the district for participating students.
5. Review your district’s policies governing family engagement, data collection and use, professional development, and the dissemination of annual notices to parents (e.g., accountability data and parents’ right to know).
6. Use the Title I Coordinator's Year-at-a-Glance timeline to guide your program.

Hints for Organization and Record-Keeping

1. Set up your digital and paper files using NDDPI’s Federal Programs Monitoring Guide as an organizational framework. Maintain current documents that will serve as evidence for each area should the district be monitored. See the Sample Documentation for each section.
2. Maintain updated lists of students served in targeted assistance (if applicable), including criteria by which students were selected, date of entry into the program, date of exit, and reason for exit (e.g., academic exit, moved, dropped by parent request, etc.)
3. Keep current copies of schoolwide and targeted assistance program plans on file at the district office.
4. Create a filing system to be used at all participating schools. This will help ensure all schools are maintaining proper documentation and assist when visiting each Title I school. Some coordinators provide each school coordinator with a portable file box, files pre-labeled with the necessary sections, and tip sheets for each section as to what type of documents should be kept in each folder.
5. Maintain hard copies as well as digital copies of documents whenever possible. Give digital documents and folders titles that make it easy to determine what each item is.
6. Maintain data systems to ensure accuracy of students participating in Title I services (i.e., STARS, PowerSchool). 
7. Establish best practices for fiscal procedures, including claims, budget revision, accurate coding, and detailed accounting ledgers.

Sample Documentation and Templates

When a district is monitored by NDDPI, documentation must be provided to show the Title I program is being implemented effectively. 

Templates and sample documentation can be found in the specific sections and resources of this handbook. Districts may customize these documents or create their own. Contact NDDPI staff to verify other allowable forms of documentation.