INTRODUCTION
The
following set of guidelines along with the training session held either
November 11 or 12, 2003, and the technical assistance provided by State
School-to-Work (STW) staff or contracted representatives will lead the
fiscal agent and partnership through the grant closure process.
This process should be comprehensive, but if managed properly during
implementation, grant closure should not be labor-intensive or time-consuming
on the part of your STW Personnel or Contractors.
Close
out will entail the following processes.
1.Records Retention
2.Financial Audit
3.Program Audit
4.Evaluation of Results
5.Final Report
6.Technical Assistance
These
processes will be treated below separately, however each one is dependent
upon the other. Records are important to the audits and evaluation
and must be gathered in one place to be reviewed. The Financial
Audit will assist in the evaluation of program activities. Both
financial and program audits will result in data for summative evaluations.
All of the information gathered for the evaluation will be used to write
your final report. And all through this process, STW staff and
contracted representatives will be in the field to assist you, answering
your questions, helping you gather the data, assisting you in laying
out your reports and reviewing records.
We
will schedule the Technical Assistance based on the schedule of close
out. Someone representing the STW Office will call to make an
appointment to see a representative of the Fiscal Agent and the Partnership.
The Partnerships with grants closing March 31, 2004 will be provided
audits and assistance January through March. Final program reports
and financial reports are due by April 30, 2004. Those
with a June 30, 2004 close out date will be audited April through June.
Final program reports and financial reports are due by July
31, 2004. Note: These dates are for reports only, not
for requisitions for reimbursements or other fiscal reporting.
Training
was held in November 2003 on these procedures for all those involved
in local grant close out. This training is essential in preparation
for grant closure. These procedures cannot stand alone but
must be accompanied by training and technical assistance.
The training will cover the six close out components and will give in-depth
training on the summative evaluation of the local STW grants.
Evaluation of impact and return on investment will be the focus of this
year’s STW evaluation and the local Partnerships must understand how
to focus their evaluations to get the results we are seeking.
There
will also be a discussion regarding uses of evaluation information,
i.e., Why does evaluation matter? Key questions for STW, like:
Why should STW activities be sustained? Have they made a positive
difference for students and schools? How do you know this?
What evidence do you have of STW impacts? Who is the audience?
What do you want to know about your project and its outcomes?
Trainees will be trained in methods and designs, how to analyze the
data they collect and summarize it for use by stakeholders. And,
most of all, what results are important for sustainability and reporting?
Trainees will leave with an evaluation plan for this final year. We
must be diligent in our efforts down to the last dollar of funding to
sustain these systems. It is from the local Partnerships that
the roots of the sustainable systems began and where they must remain.
Evaluation
discussion groups will be set up at University of Georgia (UGA) on Web-CT
to share ideas, ask questions, and receive assistance from Occupational
Research Group (ORG), state STW office, field consultants, and each
other. These Grant Close Out Procedures will be placed on the
STW website for downloading at www.dtae.org/gastw.
A
group of technical assistants have been retained to assist Partnerships
in closing out grants and accomplishing the activities contained in
this document. These assistants, STW staff and contracted representatives
trained by STW staff, will assist the Partnership in completing the
internal audits, preparing the evaluation studies, determining impact
and return on investment, finding contractual assistance for the final
report or publishing products, storing records or any number of things
assessed by the Partnership as being needed.
TA
is offered but not required. A Partnership wishing to audit itself
without our assistance however may find a disconnection between the
components of the close out. The STW staff has worked closely
with the staff of UGA ORG to make sure that all the pieces fit and the
requirements of the last few months coincide to culminate in the document
that will capture your last few years of work: The Final Report.
We
cannot stress how important this document will be to us as we will use
each and every one of them to develop the final report from the state
to the federal government. The Final Reports will become your
Partnership’s account of how well your strategies impacted school
improvement, student achievement, career education, employer involvement,
and parent involvement.
So,
that means doing your best work in those final reports. This is
not just another quarterly report. This report will take many
hours and much thought. It will take much paper and much ink.
You should be proud of your publication. A summary should be written
and disseminated to your Partnership and community. The Partnership
can assist in publishing the best practices and the good news.
But give us all the facts.
These
are the outlines for close out. They cannot stand alone.
They must be used with training and technical assistance. If you
hand them over to someone else and tell them to follow these instructions,
you will be doing them a disservice. Do not do that. If
you need assistance call the School-to-Work Office at 404-327-6950.
RECORDS RETENTION PROCEDURES
Sub-grantees
are required to retain records for each funding period for 3 years after
the sub-grantee submits its final expenditure report for that funding
period to DTAE or until all issues resulting from litigation, audit/audit
resolution, or claim have been resolved, whichever is longer. All files
must be accessible. Records shall be retained and stored in a
manner that will preserve their integrity and admissibility as evidence
in any audit or other proceeding. The burden of production and
authentication of the records shall be on the custodian of the records.
Records may be stored as electronic media as long as the media is protected
and secure. Each Partnership will need to forward one set of records
to each program successor, if the program has been sustained.
I.FISCAL
RECORDS
A.All
Grants and Fiscal Files
The goal of the specific
fiscal record retention procedures is to make sure each partnership/fiscal
agent prepares and maintains their fiscal files in the same manner.
The fiscal files should be maintained by fiscal year (one fiscal year
per box). File all original documents in the following order.
Original “Statement
of Grant Award”(s) with attachments.
Annual budgets and
corresponding amendments.
Monthly reimbursement
requests accompanied by support documentation such as GL Reports, Invoices,
Budget Reports, etc.
Original signed
Contracts accompanied by:
Sole Source or Bid
documentation,
Plan of Work, Schedule
of Payment, and
Invoices matching
payment schedule.
5.A copy of the applicable
fiscal year audit performed by an independent outside entity or the
Georgia Department of Audits.
6.One copy of the Final
Fiscal Report and one copy of the electronic media should be in the
final fiscal year’s box.
B.Storage
1.Each Partnership
will be required to box and store all hardcopy fiscal files per instructions
listed below.
a.All file boxes must
be labeled (on both ends of the box) with the following heading.
STW (Fiscal Agent
Name and Organization Number [if DTAE College]) FY (two-digit year)
(Box Contents)
Example:STWGriffinTech831FY01DemoFiscalplusCD
RETAIN
FOR 3 YEARS
b.Store the boxes in
a safe, dry, accessible environment.
2.Each Partnership
will be required to produce two (2) electronic media versions of fiscal
records. Files should be downloaded to 3½ floppy(s) disks, CDs,
or DVDs.
a.One copy is to remain
housed with the hardcopy fiscal files. The second copy is to remain
with the Fiscal Agent.
b.Label the Electronic
Media with the following heading.
STW (Fiscal Agent
Name and Organization Number[ if DTAE College])FY(two-digit year) (Grant
Type) (File Type)(File Extension)
Example:STWGriffinTech831FY03GFSFiscal.xls.
RETAIN FOR 3 YEARS
Instructions for
copying from computer - Create a folder for each grant. Under each
grant, create folders for each fiscal year. Save all documents relevant
to that grant and that specific fiscal year. Then copy to the
electronic media.
3.Create a master list
of labeled boxes. Keep the list in the fiscal agent’s possession.
II.PROGRAM RECORDS RETENTION
A.Grant
Implementation Plans [Each grant in a box(es) of its own]
1.Strategies
– One section per strategy, per school
a.All materials related
to the strategy, its objectives and activities
b.By objectives and
by school, the activities
c.Participant lists,
copies of purchases, training schedules, agendas, participant evaluations
of training sessions, employer participation lists, lesson plans, and
other evaluative data should be kept in the activity file, etc.
2.Sustainability
a.Materials related
to sustainability activities per strategy should be filed.
b.Grants written, evidence
of donations received, evidence of school improvement plans, school
budgets, employer commitments, etc.
c.Use of evaluation
data for promotional items, PR materials, news articles, presentations,
etc.
3.Reports
a.Quarterly Reports
submitted to the State
b.Reports made to the
Partnership or the Fiscal Agent
c.State On-site Progress
Reviews/Letters – FY02 and FY03
d.STW Final Report
FY04
4.Evaluation
a.Data, surveys, etc.
by grant submitted to UGA ORG, i.e., FY02 Survey Data, FY03 Survey Data
for GFS, Demo and CYDS Grant Assessment Reports
b.Evaluation data collected
for local evaluator
c.Evaluation reports
from external evaluator
d.Planning grant needs
assessment
B.Partnership
1.Meeting Agendas and
Minutes
2.Special Events –
Agendas, Products, Minutes
3.Membership – Directory
with affiliation, address, phone
C.Replicable
product(s) from STW Grants or Partnerships
1.How to Manuals
2.Tool Kits
3.Training Manuals
D.Correspondence
1 STW office correspondence
or e-mail
2.Partnership correspondence
or e-mail
3.Other correspondence
or e-mail
E.Storage
1.Each
Partnership will be required to box and store all hardcopy fiscal files
per
instructions listed below.
All file boxes must
be labeled (on both ends of the box) with the following heading.
STW(Fiscal Agent
Name and Organization Number [if DTAE College]) FY (two-digit year)
( Box Contents)
Example:STWAlbany820FY01GFSProgramplusCD
RETAIN
FOR 3 YEARS
b.Store the boxes in
a safe, dry, accessible environment.
2.Each Partnership
will be required to produce two (2) electronic media versions of fiscal
records. Files should be downloaded to 3½ floppy(s) disks, CDs,
or DVDs.
a.One copy is to remain
housed with the hardcopy fiscal files. The second copy is to remain
with the Fiscal Agent.
b.Label the Electronic
Media with the following: STW {Fiscal Agent Name and Organization
Number [if DTAE College]) FY (two-digit year) (Grant Type) (File Type)
(File Extension)
Example:STWGriffinTech831FY01GFSProgram.doc
and
STW
WinderBarrowFY03DemoProgram.xls
RETAIN
FOR 3 YEARS
c.Instructions for
copying from computer - Create a folder for each grant. Under each
grant, create folders for each fiscal year. Save all documents relevant
to that grant and that specific fiscal year. Then copy to the
electronic media.
FINANCIAL
AUDIT AND REVIEWS
This
component contains two parts: The Financial Audit and the Financial
Review. Because most of our STW fiscal agents are government agencies
receiving federal funds, they will not require an audit. However, we
are required to perform a review of financial procedures at each fiscal
agent site.
I.FINANCIAL AUDIT
If the Fiscal Agent receives
federal funds totaling $100,000, the organization falls under the Single
Audit Act of 1984, and is eligible to submit one audit for all federal
grants.
A.Single
Audit Act Eligible
1.Send a copy of the
audit for all fiscal years in which STW funds were received to the STW
Fiscal Officer
2.Must be sent with
Final Report for previous fiscal years. FY04 must be sent when
completed. See Final Fiscal Report Requirements.
PL98-1502:
Single Audit Act of 1984 - Amends title 31 of the United States Code
to add a new chapter 75 - Requirements for Single Audits.
Establishes single financial audit
requirements for State and local governments that receive $100,000 or
more in Federal assistance in any fiscal year.
Establishes single financial audit
requirements for State and local governments that receive in excess
of $25,000 but less than $100,000 in Federal assistance in any fiscal
year.
Declares that an audit conducted
in accordance with this Act shall be in
lieu of any financial or financial and compliance audit of an individual
Federal assistance program which a State or local government is required
to conduct under any other Federal law or regulation.
B.Not
Single Audit Act Eligible
1.Must use funds awarded
by STW to contract with external certified public accounting firm to
perform audit of STW accounts for all years receiving STW funds.
.
2.Audit must be done
on all accounts for life of the grants and submitted within 60 days
of grant closure to STW Fiscal Officer
II.FINANCIAL REVIEW
In Fiscal Year 2003, the
Georgia STW Fiscal Officer, Chrislyn Turner was not able to complete
a fiscal review of all 41 STW Partnerships’ Fiscal Agents as required
by Georgia STW Procedures. This Fiscal Year 2004, she will complete
all fiscal reviews with help from a contracted representative.
Financial Reviews will
be conducted by the STW Fiscal Officer or a contracted representative.
The goal of the financial review will be to assist each partnership
to ensure a successful close out by the assigned close out date and
to make sure all documents are present, meet federal audit standards
and are compliant with the record retention procedures. The following
items listed will be reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or a contracted
representative.
A.Pre-Audit
1.A thorough examination
of requisitions and draw-downs at the state office will prepare the
auditor prior to the on-site visit.
2.Any questions from
this examination can be answered during the on-site visit.
3.Any missing or delinquent
documents can be collected during the on-site visit.
4.A phone call can
alert the Fiscal Agent what is needed, what will be reviewed and an
appointment can be scheduled for the one- to two-hour review.
B.Financial
Management
1.Chart of accounts
2Cost allocation plans
3Indirect cost plans,
where applicable
4.Journal entries
5.Invoices, purchase
orders and other source documents
6.Supporting worksheets
7.Requisitioning procedures
and preparation
8.Close out documents
9.Contract budgets
and requisitions
C.Requisitions
for Reimbursement
1.Request for reimbursement
for all preceding months
2.Cash disbursements,
accruals, invoices, purchase orders and supporting documentation for
requisitions
3.All accounting records
4.Documentation for
in-kind contributions
D.Cash Management
1.Cash management procedures
- Accounts Receivables and Accounts Payables
2.Bank statements/reconciliations
for the previous month
E.Purchasing
1.Purchasing procedures
2.Purchase orders
3.Receiving reports
4.Vendor invoices
5.Contracts
a.Bids and Sole Source
Documentation
b.Time and Effort Reports
F.Travel
and Expense Statements
1.Receipts
2.Registration Forms
PROGRAM AUDIT
The
Program Audit is a self-assessment of the Partnership’s overall plan.
It is the precursor to the final evaluation of impact and return on
investment. It is not an audit to find out what you did not do,
but what you did do to help you determine impact. Evaluation is
the key to sustainability and the program audit is a step toward a successful
evaluation.
I.COMPLIANCE WITH THE PLANNED
OBJECTIVES
A.Review
Outcomes and Evaluation Methods
1.Review data and records
to support objectives and outcomes.
a.The STW Coordinator
or Partnership representative with assistance from STW Staff or contracted
representative will review the data and supporting documentation to
support the outcomes anticipated in the plan.
b.If the data and supporting
documentation has not been collected, the team will assess the need
for the data, make reasonable plans to fill the data gaps, then collect
the data and supporting documentation, to assess the progress of the
objective/outcome as incomplete or not evaluated.
2.Review Evaluation
Results
a.The STW Coordinator
or Partnership representative with assistance from STW Staff or contracted
representative will review evaluation results to make conclusions with
regard to impact and Return on Investment (ROI).
b.The STW Coordinator
with Staff/representative assistance will utilize the ROI chart (Appendix
C).
B.Determine
if Partnership complied with overall grant plans
1.Evaluated and met
outcomes?
a.The STW Coordinator
or Partnership representative with assistance from STW Staff or contracted
representative will review the grant plans to determine whether the
Partnership met its overall objectives and therefore was successful
in implanting School-to-Work Strategies in area schools, curriculum,
school improvement plans, employer business regimen, teacher training
agendas/curriculum, etc. In other words, were systems changed?
b.Another determination
may be that the strategy was not present in the schools before STW and
is present today. Impact data may not be available at the moment.
2.Did they do what
they said they were going to do? The STW Coordinator or Partnership
representative with assistance from STW Staff or contracted representative
will determine the answer to this question.
II.EVALUATION
METHODOLOGY
A.Evaluation
Plans
1.The STW Coordinator
or Partnership representative with assistance from STW staff or contracted
representative will review the partnerships’ evaluation plans and
results for each strategy.
a.Did methods measure
anticipated outcomes? Did data support outcomes?
b.Was methodology useful
in showing impact?
2.The STW Coordinator
or Partnership representative with assistance from STW staff or contracted
representative will review the partnerships’ evaluation reports.
B.Evaluation for Sustainability
1.The STW Coordinator
or Partnership representative with assistance from STW staff or contracted
representative will review sustainability plans and activities.
Look at the plans written in April 2002 Continuation of GFS and compare
to the Grant Review of September 2003. Was progress made?
Were all sources tapped? Was the Partnership aware of how public
schools and Technical Colleges were funded and was there an attempt
early on to solicit public funding? Was there an attempt to solicit
private funding?
2.The STW Coordinator
or Partnership representative with assistance from STW Staff or contracted
representative will review school improvement plans and the attempts
the Partnership made at embedding STW principles in the local school
improvement plans. ORG will also be collecting information about
STW integration into school plans.
III.DETERMINE LEVEL OF PARTNERSHIP
INVOLVEMENT
A.Membership
1.Diversity - STW Staff
or contracted representative will assist the STW Coordinator or Partnership
representative in reviewing the membership for diversity with regard
to representation: members representing the private sector; educational
institutions, secondary and postsecondary; economic development organizations;
workforce development organizations; minority, disabled, and rural populations;
and parent and student representatives.
2.Roster - Review the
roster for up-to-date address, phone, and email information and who
they represented, that is, their business/organizational affiliation.
B.Involvement of the Partnership
1.STW Staff or contracted
representative will assist the STW Coordinator or Partnership representative
in reviewing the minutes and other documentation to determine the level
of involvement the Partners had in plan development (Planning Grant)
and plan management (at what level of the plan did they want to be kept
informed). What did they want to vote on? How often was
the original plan objectives changed? Budgets amended? Was the
Partnership informed? Did they vote on thechanges?
2.STW Staff or contracted
representative will assist the STW Coordinator or Partnership representative
in reviewing the involvement of the Partnership in the evaluation process.
Were they inquisitive of the data collected? Did they ask about
evaluation results? Were they concerned about effects of STW strategies
on student achievement? Were they interested in return on investment
or impact of STW on school improvement?
3.STW Staff or contracted
representative will assist the STW Coordinator or Partnership representative
in reviewing the involvement of the Partnership in the sustainability
activities. Was the Partnership helpful in soliciting funding
or support for sustaining successful STW strategies?
IV.REVIEW PRODUCTS DEVELOPED
(I.E., FROM DEMO GRANTS)
A.Is
the product easily replicated?
STW Staff or contracted
representative will assist the STW Coordinator or Partnership representative
in reviewing the product for consistency, reliability, and replicability?
B.Has
the product been disseminated?
If the product was produced
as a requirement of the Demonstration Grant, was the product disseminated
to potential users?
V.SYSTEM-BUILDING AND SUSTAINABILITY
A.Highlight the areas that
STW has made an impact in the area.
This is the purpose of
the evaluation of these last nine months. Document how STW has
made a difference and that it deserves to be continued through other
sources.
B.Use the ROI chart to
determine the return on investment.
Show
how STW has given the business/industry/community partners a return
on their investment of STW dollars and how their continued support is
not only necessary but beneficial to the community and business.
C.What strategies are being
sustained? By whom? How Long? How?
List
strategies being sustained, source of funding/support and for how long.
Has the school system
adopted STW strategies in school improvement plans?
Review the school improvement
plans to determine whether STW strategies have been written into the
systems’ goals and objectives, i.e., career planning, programs of
study, teacher externships, etc.
EVALUATION
OF RESULTS
I.ORG ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES
A.2001-03
Reports
1.Survey
Results – local Partnerships
a.Focused on what activities
were being implemented
b.Who was participating
in the activities and in what ways
c.What progress was
being made toward achieving the state vision for STW and closing gaps
identified by local partnerships in the below focus areas.
Career awareness
Employer involvement
Student achievement
System-building
2.Overall
conclusions were made in reports to the STW Office and DTAE
B.2003-4
Assessment Plan
1.Accountability for
use of federal funds and results achieved (Program Audit).
2.Statewide assessment
of selected elements of STW.
3.Locally developed,
small scale studies of targeted STW strategies to provide relevant information
that justifies continuation of successful STW activities by partnerships.
4.Demonstration Grant
and CYDS Assessments
a.Set of final evaluation
questions that address grant requirements.
b.Follow up by individual
phone interview with ORG staff.
II.EVALUATION RESULTS
– KEY QUESTIONS
A.Accountability/Compliance
1.Key
Questions
a.Did you do what you
were funded to do?
b.Were all objectives
completed, if not is there an acceptable explanation or alternative
provided?
c.What evidence do
you have of completion of funded objectives?
d.Is there evidence
that anticipated results were obtained?
e.What was the return
on investment from STW funding?
2.Tasks
to be completed by Partnerships is a self assessment through Program
Audit
3.Deliverable/product
is the final report
B.Selected
Elements (Sustainable Best Practices) to be assessed by ORG
1.Elements
and Key Questions
a.Teachers in Industry/Teacher
Interns: How are they organized, who is involved, what activities
occur, what elements seem to make them successful, how has effectiveness/impact
been assessed and documented (e.g., changes in teaching practices, changes
in awareness/understanding of career/technical education or STW by educators,
use of contextual teaching and learning by academic teachers, etc.)?
b.School Improvement
Plans: What strategies have been used to incorporate STW into
local school improvement plans? What has resulted from these efforts?
What examples of effective strategies can be identified? What
samples, language, documents can be obtained and shared with others?
c.Employer Involvement
Strategies: How have employers been involved with STW activities such
as Teachers in Industry and Choices? What strategies have been most
successful? What makes these approaches effective? What
outcomes have been achieved for schools, educators, and students?
d.Lessons in Collaboration:
What have we learned from the way STW collaboration has occurred among
education, business/industry, and community partners? What has worked,
hasn’t worked, and why? How can others learn from these lessons?
2.Tasks
to be completed by the Local Partnerships
a.Respond to ORG staff
inquiries/requests for information about partnership activities, documentation
of results, and interviews with key project personnel.
b.Assist ORG staff
to identify, contact, and interview key participants in STW activities
(community partners, teachers, employers, students).
c.Provide project materials
and records as requested by ORG staff.
3.Deliverables
for this Area of Evaluation by ORG
a.Reports, data or
evaluation findings, briefing papers, articles, presentations, and web
postings that will be prepared by ORG for each research area listed
above.
b.Information provided
by partnerships will be used by ORG to create this deliverable for dissemination
to various audiences at a state and national level.
C.Impact
1.What?
a.Each partnership
will identify key strategies completed by their partnership and evaluate
the impact of implementation.
b.Each partnership
must collect, analyze, and report locally relevant data that
shows that “STW Makes a Difference”.
2.Why?
a.The purpose of these
small-scale local evaluation studies is to identify questions relevant
to the partnership.
b.To gather information
that will be useful to market STW activities/materials/processes at
the local level that have been successful.
c.To provide evidence
of this success and identify what has changed because of STW.
3.Key
Questions
a.Why should this STW
activity continue to be funded by schools/employers?
b.What difference does
it make in the education of youth? What has changed as a result
of the activity (awareness, knowledge, attitudes, skills, behaviors,
practice)?
c.How do you know this?
What evidence do you have of its impact?
d.How has it contributed
to education or economic development systems in the community or region?
4.Tasks Partnerships
are Required to Complete
a.Attend a one-day
regional workshop conducted by ORG on locally designed evaluation of
STW strategies – how to conduct evaluations that are useful to you
and your partnership, collect evidence of results.
b.Identify STW strategies
completed by your partnership that you want to see continued through
alternative funding sources.
c.Identify relevant
questions the partnership wants to answer.
d.Design and carry
out a local evaluation study that will answer the questions.
e.Collect data (e.g.,
interviews, surveys, focus groups) from project participants (e.g.,
teachers, parents, students), or review existing data and documentation.
f.Analyze and report
on findings from local studies.
5.Deliverables
for the Evaluation Area
a.Impact Evaluation
Report
▪Describe the STW
strategy studied, evaluation questions, data
collection
methods and findings that indicate impact/results.
▪Report(s) will be
part of the Final Report submitted to the STW
Office
by local partnerships.
b.The ORG will review
and summarize statewide trends and findings resulting from these studies.
▪Information from
these studies will be provided to the US Department of
Education,
and US Department of Labor.
▪Information will
be available to a broad audience through website
distributions
and other publications.
TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE
I.ASSESS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
(TA) NEEDS
A.As the Fiscal and Program
reviewers and auditors work through the reviews/audits with the STW
Partnership staff or representatives, assess the needs for TA with the
Partnership and Fiscal Agent Representatives.
1.Record the type and
quantity of TA needed
2.Determine how the
TA will be provided
B.Prepare
schedules for further TA and training.
1.Prepare the schedule
for the TA to visit with the staff/representative.
2.Assist the staff/representative
in procuring the TA needed.
II.ASSISTANCE WITH EVALUATION
A.Professional
Development Workshops on Evaluation
1.One-day training
workshop November 11 or 12, 2003 conducted for local partnerships on
what evaluation is, why it matters, and how you can design and carry
out small-scale local studies of STW activities in your partnership.
Information about state requirements for STW close out will also be
discussed at this workshop. Attendance is mandatory.
2.STW local coordinators
are encouraged to bring anyone who will be assisting with evaluation
activities this year: consultants, school system data personnel, advisory
board members, etc.
B.Field
Consultants for On-site Technical Assistance
1.A team of field evaluation
consultants will be hired and assigned to work with local partnerships
to assist them in completing evaluation requirements for close out through
on-site visits and individual communications by telephone and email.
2.They will serve as
a liaison and resource for both the state STW office and ORG in data
collection and reporting processes.
C.On-going
Consultation with Partnerships
1.ORG and staff from
the state STW office will be in touch by phone and email with local
partnerships regarding evaluation activities, data collection, reporting
needs and questions throughout the year. A website for STW evaluation
(Web-CT) will be established as a central clearinghouse for questions,
discussions, and resources on closeout and evaluation.
2.The STW distribution
list will be used for communications with local coordinators as needed.
III.ASSISTANCE WITH FINAL
REPORT
A.Use format below and
review above to begin the process of formulating the parts of the final
report.
1.The Program Audit
should be a good review of documents for preparing the final report.
2.The results of compliance
evaluation, evaluation of special elements, and impact evaluation should
lead to the final report.
3.Technical assistance
can be provided through ORG and STW staff and contracted representatives
in preparation activities leading up to the writing of the final report.
B.If the Partnership representatives
cannot fully complete the final reports, the STW Office has provided
enough funding within the Partnership’s close out grant to Contract
with outside consultants to assist in the writing and/or editing of
the reports.
FORMAT FOR
FINAL REPORT
A
Final Report must be written on each grant. The TA Grant Final Program
Report was solicited July 2003 and if not yet submitted must be ASAP.
(The TA Grant Final Program Report Format is attached as Appendix B.)
Final Reports for Gap-filling Strategies (GFS), Comprehensive Youth
Development Strategies (CYDS), and Demonstration (Demo) Grants should
follow the format below.
I.FINAL FISCAL REPORT FOR
EACH GRANT (All Grants)
A final Fiscal Report will
be required for each funded grant. The required format will include
an excel spreadsheet outlining figures accompanied by a Word document
explaining all figures and expenditures.
A.The
Final Report (Excel Spreadsheet) will consist of the following items.
1.Total Award amount
over the life of the grant
2.Total expenditures
over the life of the grant
3.Breakdown of expenditures
by sub-class for the grant (example: staff travel, program supplies,
office supplies, etc) -- See Appendix D
4.In-Kind, Cost-sharing/matching
resources, if any, over the life of the grant
5.Any unspent unobligated
funds at the time of grant closing
6.Any significant budget
amendments
B.The Final
Report (Word Document) will consist of the following items.
Explanation of significant
budget amendments (explain any deviations from the original spending
plan (over 20%) or solid changes in programmatic scope) Why?
Explanation of
In-Kind, Cost-sharing/matching resources
Explanation of Administrative
or Indirect Costs
Any unspent unobligated
funds at the time of grant closing
Attach to the Final
Report copies of official fiscal audits conducted by the Georgia Department
Audits or an independent outside entity for each fiscal year you received
School-to-Work grant funds.
(The summary page of the statewide audit showing the findings for your
college will suffice.)
II.PROGRAM FINAL REPORT
(GFS, CYDS, Demo)
A.Narrative of Actual Accomplishments
by Objective: For Each Grant (GFS, CYDS, and Demo).
1.Provide information
on how the objective was met, what schools participated, what grade
levels participated, how many students participated, etc.
2.Explain how the activity
was evaluated and how it met the objective. What were the significant
outcomes?
3.Explain how the objective
strengthened the strategy and improved student achievement, career awareness,
employer involvement or parent involvement.
B.Did
Your Partnership Comply with Overall Grant Plans?
1.Partnership met its
objectives or not? If any of the established objectives were not met,
explain why not.
2.If any of the strategies
did not work in the area, explain why not.
3.Did the Partnership
do what they said they were going to do?
4.Did the Partnership
carry out the evaluation methodologies it wrote in its plan?
5.Did the evaluation
methodologies yield evaluation results to support sustainability?
C.Determine
how Evaluation Results were used.
1.Were evaluation results
used for sustainability?
a.Was progress made
toward sustaining strategies?
b.Were strategies sustained
in school improvement plans?
2.Did evaluation show
impact?
a.What were impacts
or outcomes on the communities in your area as a result of STW (i.e.,
return on investment)?
b.Identify the most
important impacts or outcomes of these changes for students and/or schools.
c.List any sources
of data for identified impacts/outcomes such as your own evaluation
data or that of UGA/ORG.
D.Level
of Partnership Involvement
1.Membership
a.List affiliation
and organization represented.
b.Roster list with
demographics, county representation, address, etc.
2.Involvement of the Partnership in
the local STW Initiative.
a.Write a narrative
on the level of involvement of the Partnership in Plan Development,
Managing the Plan, Evaluation, and Sustainability Planning.
b.Key questions to
ask.
What
did they want to vote on? How often were the original plan objectives
changed? How often were budgets amended? Was the Partnership informed
of these changes? Did they vote on the changes? Were they inquisitive
of the data collected? Did they ask about evaluation results?
Were they concerned about effects of STW strategies on student achievement?
Were they interested in return on investment or impact of STW on school
improvement? Was the Partnership helpful in soliciting funding or support
for sustaining successful STW strategies?
E.Were
any Products Developed?
1.Has the product been
replicated? Can it be easily replicated by others?
2.Has the product been
disseminated?
3.Describe what is
considered to be best practices, products that will be replicated, and
strategies that will live as legacies of the STW Initiative in your
area. Some examples have been the Teachers in Industry Program, the
CYDS Initiative, Parent Academy, Programs of Study, Statewide Dual Enrollment
Crosswalk and Course Articulation Project, Certified Literate Community
Project, Big Bucks, Counselor Training Project, Career Development Facilitator
Training, etc.
F.System-Building
and Sustainability
1.Provide a list of
STW strategies that will be sustained when the Federal STW funds are
no longer available. For each strategy, indicate state policies, regulations,
and/or codes if any that will support continued implementation of these
STW features. Identify financial and/or other resources that will be
used to support the STW strategy after the grant ends.
2.Has the school system
adopted STW strategies in school improvement plans? Review the school
improvement plans to determine whether STW strategies have been written
into the systems’ goals and objectives, i.e., career planning, programs
of study, teacher externships, etc.
Attach copies of
any local evaluations of your area’s STW Initiatives
III.Final Report Submission
Requirements
The Final Report must be
bound. The front of the binder should have the Partnership’s
name, Fiscal Agent Name and Date.
The binder should include
the following items:
Final Program Report
- Local Evaluations
Final Fiscal Report
- Copies of all required audits
Completed Final
Report checklist
Electronic media
(CD, 3 ½ floppy disk, or DVD) which must include one copy of the final
program report and one copy of the final fiscal report
Please send two hardcopies
of all reports and one copy of electronic media to the below.
School-To-Work
Office
3103-B Clairmont
Road
Atlanta,
GA 30329
APPENDIX
A
CLOSE OUT
CHECKLIST
GRANT CLOSE
OUT CHECKLIST
RECORDS RETENTION
I.FISCAL RECORDS
Gather information by Grant
Award
Box Budgets and Budget Amendments
by grant award
Box Requisitions with back-up
documentation behind approved budget and/or amended
budget
Box Contracts with original
signatures
Box Contract invoices according
to plan of work and payment schedule
Box all official financial
audits
Final Report developed and
submitted to STW Office
Boxes Labeled and Stored
per Procedures
Computer files downloaded
and stored on Electronic media: One placed in box and one
stored
with Fiscal Agent
II.PROGRAM RECORDS
Gather
information by grant type (GFS, TA, CYDS, Demo)
Box
Grant Plans, Strategies, Objectives and Activity Information including
purchases by Grant type
Box
Evaluation Data, Quarterly Reports, Progress Reviews by State Staff,
and Evaluation Reports
Box
Sustainability Plans, public relations, and sustainability activities
Box
Partnership information
Box
Staff Development information
Box
Product Development information
Box
Correspondence and other miscellaneous files
Download
computer files on electronic storage media: Place one set in box
and one set with Fiscal Agent
FINANCIAL AUDIT
I.FINANCIAL AUDIT
Audit
for FY 00 available and attached to final report
Audit
for FY 01 available and attached to final report
Audit
for FY 02 available and attached to final report
Audit
for FY 03 available and attached to final report
Audit
for FY 04 available and attached to final report
II.FISCAL REVIEW
Financial
Management procedures reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or contracted representative:
Date ________
Purchasing
procedures reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or contracted representative:
Date
________
Requisition
procedures reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or contracted representative:
Date
________
Cash
Management procedures reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or contracted
representative:Date
________
Travel
procedures reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or contracted representative:
Date
________
Contract
procedures reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or contracted representative:
Date
________
Coordination
between STW Coordinator, Partnership and Fiscal Agent reviewed by STW
Fiscal Officer or contracted representative:Date ________
Close
Out procedures reviewed by STW Fiscal Officer or contracted representative:
Date
________
PROGRAM AUDIT for GFS, CYDS,
& DEMO
Outcomes
and evaluation methods reviewed by Partnership staff or contracted representative:
Date: _________
Partnership
complied with overall grant plans determined by Partnership staff or
contracted representative: Date: _________
Evaluation
results reviewed and determination on how results were used by Partnership
staff
or
contracted representative: Date: _________
Partnership
involvement reviewed by Partnership staff or contracted representative:
Date:
_________
Products
reviewed by Partnership staff or contracted representative: Date:
_________
System-building
and sustainability activities reviewed by Partnership staff or contracted
representative: Date: _________
TA
provided to Partnership staff or contracted representative:Date(s):
_______________
EVALUATION OF RESULTS
Respond
to ORG staff inquiries/requests for information about partnership activities,
documentation
of results, interviews with key project personnel.
Assist
ORG staff to identify, contact, and interview key participants in STW
activities
(community
partners, teachers, employers, students).
Provide
project materials and records as requested by ORG staff.
Identify
STW strategies completed by your partnership that you want to see continued
through
alternative funding sources.
Identify
relevant questions the partnership wants answered.
Design
and carry out a local evaluation study that will answer the questions.
Collect
data (e.g., interviews, surveys, focus groups) with project participants
(e.g., teachers,
parents,
students) or review existing data and documentation.
Analyze
and report on findings from local studies.
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Identified
TA needs with STW and ORG staff
Scheduled
STW and ORG staff or contracted representatives for TA
Identified
contractual needs
CHECKLIST FORMAT FOR FINAL
REPORT
I.FISCAL FINAL REPORT FOR
EACH GRANT (GFS, CYDS, DEMO) INCLUDES
Prepared
Excel Spreadsheets for each grant
Total
Award amount over the life of the grant
Total
expenditures over the life of the grant
Breakdown
of expenditures by sub-class for the grant (example: staff travel, program
supplies,
office supplies, etc)
In-Kind,
Cost-sharing/matching resources, if any, over the life of the grant
Any
unspent unobligated funds at the time of grant closing
Any
significant budget amendments
Prepared
Word Documents for each grant
Explanation of significant
budget amendments (explain any deviations from the original spending
plan (over 20%) or solid changes in programmatic scope) Why?
Explanation of In-Kind,
Cost-sharing/matching resources
Explanation of Administrative
or Indirect Costs
Any unspent unobligated
funds at the time of grant closing
Attach
to the Final Report copies of official fiscal audits conducted by the
Georgia Department of Audits or an independent outside entity for each
fiscal year you received School-to-Work grant funds.
(The summary page of the statewide audit showing the findings for your
college will suffice.)
II.PROGRAM FINAL REPORT
FOR EACH GRANT (GFS, CYDS, DEMO) INCLUDES
Narrative
of actual accomplishments
Explanation
of compliance with plan
Explanation
of how evaluation results were used
Identification
of the most important impacts or outcomes and the sources of data
List
of Partnership members and affiliation
Narrative
explaining Partnership involvement in STW Initiative
Explanation
of products and best practices developed
Narrative
of system-building and sustainability activities
Copies
of any local evaluations of your area’s STW plans
APPENDIX
B
TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE GRANT
FINAL REPORT
FORMAT
Technical Assistance
Grant Final Report
Partnership:
Coordinator:
Date:
Fiscal
Agent:
FA Contact:
Grant Number:
Title
of Training Provided
Brief Description of Type of Training
Provided
Date(s) of Training
Training Provider
Location of Training
Number Trained
Target Audience
Total Expended
TOTAL EXPENDED
$0.00
TOTAL DEOBLIGATED
$25,000.00
APPENDIX C
RETURN ON INVESTMENT CHART
RETURN
ON INVESTMENT
Impact
Focus
Areas (check all
that apply)
STW Activity *
Total
$ per activity
(life of STW funding)
Total Partici-pants
# Stu-dents
# Educ-ators
# Em-ployers
# Parents
# Others
Increasing
Career Awareness
Strengthen-ing
Student Achievement
Expanding
Employer Involvement
System
Building/ Sustainability
(students, teachers, employers,
and others)
APPENDIX D
SAMPLE
FISCAL FINAL REPORT
Partnership Name:
Fiscal Agent Name:
Partnership Number:
Total Grant Award for _____________
FY00-FY04
$300,000.00
BUDGET
Categories
Original Budget
Budget Amendments
Total Budgeted Amount
Actual Expenditures
Variance
Salary
$ 100,000.00
$ (10,000.00)
$
90,000.00
$
90,000.00
$
-
Fringe
Staff
Travel
$
16,000.00
$ (10,000.00)
$
6,000.00
$
10,000.00
$
4,000.00
Account
code
Account
code
Account
code
Office
Supplies
$
25,000.00
$ (15,000.00)
$
10,000.00
$
5,000.00
$ (5,000.00)
Account
code
Account
code
Account
code
Contracts,
Consultants and Per Diems
$
40,000.00
$ 25,000.00
$
65,000.00
$
27,000.00
$ (38,000.00)
Account
code
Account
code
Account
code
Other
-
$
89,000.00
$ 10,000.00
$
99,000.00
$
58,000.00
$ (41,000.00)
Account
code
Account
code
Account
code
Indirect
Costs
$
30,000.00
$
-
$
30,000.00
$
25,000.00
$ (5,000.00)
Administrative
Costs
$
-
$
-
Total
Expenses
$ 300,000.00
$
-
$ 300,000.00
$
215,000.00
$ (85,000.00)
In- Kind
Donations- Office Space and Equipment
$
75,000.00
Unspent
Funds
$
85,000.00
Budget
Amendments Due to Programmatic Changes
$40,000.00
Moved funds
to pay for Parent Involvement Consultant and Parent Inv Program Supplies
GEORGIA
SCHOOL-TO-WORK INITIATIVE
GRANT CLOSE
OUT PROCEDURES
GEORGIA SCHOOL-TO-WORK
INITIATIVE
GRANT CLOSE
OUT PROCEDURES
12/2/2003
12/2/2003