2022 5th Quarter Portfolio

The Boston Public Schools (BPS) 5th Quarter Portfolio, a division of the Opportunity Portfolio, is a key strategy committed to identifying and increasing equitable access to high-quality summer learning opportunities that take an anti-racist approach and align all work with Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Practices (CLSP). 5th Quarter Summer Learning programs will have the following outcomes: 

• stem summer learning loss and promote equitable literacy;
• provide enrichment opportunities that develop student socio-emotional skills and increase student efficacy by building skills and competencies – paying careful attention to any additional social-emotional needs created by the pandemic
• strengthen the effectiveness of school-community partnerships; and
• promote student health, safety, and wellbeing.

Please review the following information carefully before beginning your application: 

The 5th Quarter Portfolio is not intended to fully fund proposed programs and funding is limited. In an effort to more equitably fund programs, applicants from Community Based-Organizations and Nonprofit Partners are asked to demonstrate their fundraising capacity to support their Summer Learning Academy by committing to fundraise a minimum of 10% of their summer operating costs from sources outside of this 5th Quarter Portfolio. This will continue to be an eligibility requirement for all Community Based-Organization and Nonprofit Partner programs applying for 5th Quarter funding that will be assessed upon the submission of your application and program budget. BPS Schools are exempt from this requirement. 

BPS Schools and Community Partners that meet the minimum criteria outlined below and that are committed to expanding opportunities for Boston Public Schools students to equitably access anti-racist and culturally and linguistically relevant summer learning programs are invited to apply for the 2022 5th Quarter Portfolio. Applications that do not meet the minimum criteria will not be considered.

MINIMUM CRITERIA

To be considered for funding, programs must meet ALL of the minimum criteria below:

1. Organization must be a BPS school or a registered 501c(3) non-profit organization.
2. Programming must be offered to participating students at no cost
3. Non-profit organizations must commit to fundraising at least 10% of their summer operating costs (unmet need) from sources outside of this 5th Quarter Portfolio.
4. Program must serve a minimum cohort of 30 student participants per site who consistently attend over the course of the entire program.
5. Program must hire licensed teachers of appropriate grade level and/or content area to conduct academic instruction.
6. The program must offer a minimum number of program hours and academic hours, according to the following grade level guidelines:

PRE-K-GRADE 8:

• • Program must span a minimum of 25 total days offered at a minimum of 6 hours per day for a minimum of 150 total program hours.
  • Program must offer a minimum of 75 hours of ELA and/or Math aligned with BPS Academic Standards and grade-level Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks.
  • Program must include enrichment activities and programming into the schedule.  Enrichment can be provided by program staff, via an afterschool program provider, or through an external organization that is contracted to provide enrichment services.
  • Program must maintain a minimum adult-student ratio at all times during programming: PreK-K – 1:11; Gr. 1-8 – 1:15

GRADES 9-12 and Credit Recovery:

• • Program must span a minimum of 20 total days offered at a minimum of 4 hours per day for a minimum of 80 total academic content hours. 
  • The academic content must be aligned with BPS Academic Standards and grade-level Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks or relevant college-level standards.
  • Program must maintain a minimum adult-student ratio at all times during programming: Gr. 9-12 – 1:25

7. Program must recruit and enroll BPS students eligible for proposed programming. Funding is only provided for Boston Public Schools students (does not include charter, private or parochial school students) and funded programs must create new seats to serve BPS students whose schools have selected them for enrollment in a Summer Learning Academy. A “new seat” is defined as a seat not restricted to pre-registered or pre-enrolled students. Programs must accept students on a rolling basis until enrollment closes.
8. School-proposed programs must accept a minimum of 15% of participants from the surrounding neighborhood and/or other school(s). Up to 85% of student participants may be enrolled from the home school.
9. Applicants must attend or complete mandatory training sessions scheduled by the BPS Summer Learning Team.
10. Programs MUST implement the following measurement tools:

• • District Academic Assessment – grades 3-8 (rising 4th-9th)
  • Observation by an Assessment of Program Practices Tool (APT) Certified Observer – all grades
  • Survey of Academic & Youth Outcomes – Youth (SAYO-Y) – grades 3+ (rising 4th+)
  • Holistic Student Assessment – Retrospective Pre Post (HSA-RPP) – grade 5+ (rising 6th+)
  • Survey of Academic & Youth Outcomes – Teacher (SAYO-T) – all grades

Applicants who fit the above criteria, may apply for specified funding in the categories listed below:

• English Learner Summer Learning Academy – Must meet all minimum criteria listed above based on grades served (For K-8: 150 total hours over 25 days with a minimum of 75 hours of ELA and/or Math; For Grades 9-12: 80 total academic content hours over 20 days; 30 students minimum, participation in measurement etc) and hire ESL Certified or SEI endorsed staff to serve classrooms with 100% English Learners. Please review all minimum criteria in the introduction of this application before completing your application.
  • • Selecting this sub-category means you intend to serve ONLY English Learners in your program or have separate strands for ELs and non-ELs. In order to receive funding for this category, classrooms must be separated by EL status. Classrooms with staff funded by Title III funds must be 100% English Learners to be eligible for funding.
• Summer Learning Academy – Must meet all minimum criteria listed above based on grades served (For K-8: 150 total hours over 25 days with a minimum of 75 hours of ELA and/or Math; For Grades 9-12: 80 total academic content hours over 20 days; 30 students minimum, participation in measurement etc. Please review all minimum criteria above before completing your application.
  • • Selecting this sub-category means you intend to provide a general education program offering both academics and enrichment to students in grades K1-11 (rising K2-12). These programs are not intended to provide course credit for students. All students, regardless of their LEP status can participate and content should be differentiated, but these programs would not be required to hire ESL certified teachers to provide instruction. 
• High School Credit Recovery – Must meet all minimum criteria listed earlier in the application based on grades served: For Credit Recovery: 80 total academic content hours over 20 days; 30 students minimum, participation in measurement etc. Please review all minimum criteria above before completing your application.
  • • Selecting this sub-category means that you intended to issue credits to students in grades 6-12 who have failed courses. 

You can view expanded descriptions of the 5th Quarter Portfolio funding categories here.

Applicants who would like to participate in the 5th Quarter but are not requesting funding from the Boston Public Schools must still address the 5th Quarter Summer Learning outcomes outlined above and meet minimum criteria #6, 7, 9 and 10. When applying, programs would select the category below:

• 5th Quarter Portfolio (Unfunded) – Selecting this sub-category means you intend to participate in the 5th Quarter for measurement and enrollment of BPS students, as well as Professional Development and Facilities support, but you are not seeking funding.
  • • The program must offer a minimum number of program hours and academic hours, according to above grade level guidelines; the program must serve BPS students; applicants must attend or complete mandatory training sessions scheduled by the BPS Summer Learning Team and programs MUST implement the measurement tools provided.

BENEFITS OF BECOMING A PORTFOLIO PARTNER

• Eligibility for BPS Summer Learning Academy funding
• Usage of BPS facilities
• Increased access to data and measurement tools that support programmatic outcomes
• Access to BPS curriculum resources
• Promotion of program to schools, students, and families
• Brokering of partnerships between schools and community-based organizations
• Technical assistance and professional development

APPLICATION PROCESS

Step One 

Before beginning the 5th Quarter Portfolio 2022 Application, you must complete or update your PartnerBPS profile with information to reflect your 2022 summer program. The application pulls information from your program profile, so this step must be completed first.

Please follow these steps on PartnerBPS to update your Program Profile, including summer 2022 start and end dates:

1. Log in to PartnerBPS.org with your username and password.
2. Once logged in, scroll over “Manage Programs” at the top of the dashboard.
3. Click “Manage My Programs”
4. Navigate to the appropriate program, and click “Edit Program”
5. Make necessary updates to your Profile, and click “Submit”

If this is your first time applying for the 5th Quarter Portfolio, please complete PartnerBPS organization and program registration. 

• Please Note: BPS Schools’ Organization is listed under “Summer-[School Name]”
• For help registering, there is a step-by-step user guide book for PartnerBPS found at: https://partnerbps.org/help-school-community-partners/

Step Two: Written Application

All applicants who have updated their PartnerBPS profile and meet the minimum qualifications may complete the written application and apply to be part of the 5th Quarter Portfolio (unfunded). Applicants that meet eligibility requirements may apply for specified funding in the following service categories based on their service population: English Learner Summer Learning Academy, Summer Learning Academy, or High School Credit Recovery. Please carefully review the service category requirements before beginning an application for funding. 

The link to the application will be posted in October 2021. 

BOTH STEPS for all applications must be completed by 5pm on November 30, 2021.

After applications are submitted on November 30, the applications will go through a vetting process to determine if applicants are accepted into the 5th Quarter Portfolio. Applicants will be notified of their application status by the end of January 2022.

APPLICATION REVIEW

Applications will be reviewed and scored by a panel of experts that is committed to developing and fostering an inclusive and equitable community of summer learning partners and experiences.  Our review committee will include Central Office Staff, School Staff, and Students who will audit your application for service category eligibility and alignment to the BPS Strategic Plan 2020-2025.  Strong application candidates will have a robust academic component that integrates CLSP and meets or exceeds the minimum criteria for academic hours. Application scoring also takes into account the Opportunity Index of schools served and applicants will receive a copy of their scores after funding decisions are released.

5th QUARTER PORTFOLIO APPLICATION TIMELINE

October 18: Release of 5th Quarter Application
Late October: Scheduled Information Sessions
November 30: Deadline to complete written 5th Quarter Application
December: 5th Quarter Portfolio Reviewers will score applications and reach out with any questions or concerns regarding your application.
Late January: The 5th Quarter Portfolio & funded Summer Learning Academies selected and announced

QUESTIONS

Please submit all related questions via email to summerlearning@bostonpublicschools.org.