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GEER Emergency Assistance to Non-Public Schools (EANS I) Grant Program

Eligibility

Funds were available to non-public schools that meet the following definitions below:

  • K-12 Non-profit non-public school. Standalone Pre-K schools are not eligible to apply for funding. 
  • School that is accredited, licensed, or otherwise approved to operate in accordance with State law.
  • School that existed and operated prior to March 13, 2020.
  • Consortium of eligible non-public schools - An organization that represents a group of non-public schools and has governing authority over the schools listed in the application.
  • Non-governing Consortium of eligible non-public schools - an organization that is aggregating support for a group of non-public schools. 
  • The school requesting services or assistance did not and will not apply for and receive a loan under the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(37)) that is made on or after December 27, 2020. 

NOTE: If a non-public school applies for a PPP loan on or after December 27, 2020, but does not receive funds under the PPP, the school may apply for services or assistance under the EANS program, as long as the non-public school meets the requirements and deadlines of this application. If a non-public school applied for or received a PPP loan prior to December 27, 2020, it remains eligible for the EANS program. Similarly, if a non-public school applies for but does not receive services or assistance through EANS, nothing in the Education Stabilization Fund would preclude that non-public school from applying for and receiving a PPP loan on or after December 27, 2020.

Non-Governing Consortia Applicants

Applications were also accepted from non-profit organizations that aggregate support for a group of non-public schools but do not have governing authority over the schools it represents. A non-public school within that consortium must be named as the applicant/fiscal agent, and the consortium lead must collect Consortia Sign-Over agreement from each participating school to work on behalf of the schools included in the application.

The Consortia Sign-Over agreement was required to be submitted to eansapplications@cde.state.co.us by April 12, 2021.

Prioritization

Section 312(d)(3)(C) requires an SEA to prioritize services or assistance to non-public schools that enroll low-income students and are most impacted by COVID-19. 

The CRRSA Act does not prescribe what poverty data a state must request from a non-public school in its application. The statute also does not prescribe the poverty threshold a state  must use. Accordingly, an SEA has flexibility. CDE will allow for the use of existing, generally available poverty data to enable reasonable estimates of a school’s low-income status rather than requiring a new data collection. To the extent a non-public school has these data available, possible data sources might include:

EANS Fund Distribution

Based on the applications received, CDE calculated a per pupil allocation to determine final award amounts for each school/applicant. For preliminary application and budget purposes, the range suggested for applicants to use is $500-700 per pupil as a base amount, plus an additional $500-700 per student who is from a low-income family as a supplemental amount (so the range per pupil not from a low-income family is $500-700, and the range per pupil from a low-income family is $1,000-1,400). CDE reserved the right to award above or below this range. The per pupil allocation was capped at an amount not to exceed the other supplemental per pupil allocation ranges for the state from similar funding sources.

Funding Options

Eligible non-public schools or a consortium of eligible non-public schools were able to request funding in the following ways:

  • REIMBURSEMENT - the grantee will submit proof of payment for materials or activities in the grantee's approved grant application. CDE will then reimburse the grantee for these expenses. Reimbursements may be claimed for any allowable, approved expenditures between March 13, 2020 and September 30, 2023 and or;

NOTE: There are certain allowable activities under EANS that are not permitted to use the REIMBURSEMENT option. These are: Improvements to ventilation systems (including windows), except for portable air purification systems, which may be reimbursed; any expenses reimbursed through a loan guaranteed under the PPP (15 U.S.C. 636(a)) prior to December 27, 2020; staff training and professional development on sanitization, the use of PPE, and minimizing the spread of COVID-19; developing instructional plans, including curriculum development, for remote or hybrid learning or to address learning loss.

Allowable Uses Include:   

  • Any expenses reimbursed through a loan guaranteed under the PPP (15 U.S.C. 636(a)) prior to December 27, 2020

Review Process and Timeline

Applications were reviewed by CDE staff to ensure they contain all required components. 

Submission Process and Deadline

Applications were completed and submitted through the online application by Monday, April 12, 2021.  A preliminary electronic budget form was also submitted and emailed to eansapplications@cde.state.co.us by April 12, 2021.

Incomplete or late applications were not considered.

Archive of Training and FAQs

EANS Application Training

March 22, 2021

EANS Procurement Training

April 15, 2021

EANS Program Support: Hiring Staff Training

September 8, 2021