The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is seeking overall school enrollment and economically disadvantaged student count data from all approved non-public schools across the state.  The Department needs this important data to calculate equitable service levels for non-public schools under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).  Approved non-public schools are encouraged to provide this data as soon as possible, but no later than May 14, 2021. Any approved non-public school that does not provide the Department with this requested data by the May 14, 2021, deadline will not be eligible for equitable services during in the 2021-2022 school year.

The Maine DOE is collecting this data from approved non-public schools through an online survey.  As part of this survey, approved non-public schools will be asked for the following information:

• Overall school enrollment as of October 1, 2020 (required)
• Economically disadvantaged student information (optional for those seeking Title I services)

October 1, 2020, enrollment counts are used to calculate equitable service levels for both Titles II and IV of the ESEA.  Similarly, economically disadvantaged student information is used to calculate equitable service levels for the Title I program.

The economically disadvantaged student data needed for the survey includes each student’s:  (1) home address, (2) grade level, (3) eligibility criteria met (i.e. Free Lunch, Reduced Lunch, TANF, Medicare, or Tuition Assistance based on Free or Reduced Lunch Income Levels); and (4) the SAU District and School the student would have attended based on their residence.  Equitable service levels for Title I include those identified economically disadvantaged children who would have attended public schools that have Title I services.  Children who would not attend a public Title I school do not contribute to the equitable service levels.  Generally, children ages 5-17 can be counted for this data collection.  Please note that the low-income measure used for Title I for current students could be from the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.

For more on the economically disadvantaged student data elements requested within the survey, as well as information about Title I program implementation, please review a snapshot of .

Approved non-public school officials are encouraged to review Equitable Services Guidelines as well as the non-regulatory guidance for Titles I, II, and IV when thinking about possible ways to support the needs of their students through ESEA programs.  Non-regulatory guidance for each program is provided below:

The information provided by each approved non-public school will be used to calculate the level of equitable services that school would be eligible for during the 2021-2022 school year.

For any questions regarding this data collection process or the survey itself, please contact Title IA Program Specialist, Jackie Godbout, at jackie.godbout@maine.gov