001All right. Welcome everyone. Um, thank you for joining us our Texas Lift State Approved Provider List for Lots of Five Overview Webinar. This webinar will review important information about our approved provider application process. You may already be familiar with some of this information based on resources posted on our Texas um, TEA State Approved Provider List site or previous cycles. If you are, we ask you listen and think of questions that may not be answered by our current materials as well as point to differences, small differences that uh, may have been made uh, on upgrades from the previous process. I also want to note that we will not be offended if you drop off at any time during this meeting. Again, this meeting is being recorded so that it is available to you and other organizations
002as a resource. I do want to take a moment to introduce myself, Riley Kuczkowski, and my colleague Zach Schnose. We are both in the regional supporting coaching team and we are here to answer your questions and you through this State Approved Provider List Lift Application Process. So, we'll do our best to answer your questions at the end of this webinar and we'll also create an FAQ document that will be available um, on our SAAPL website and in our application portal um, that you can refer to um, back as needed. Our objective today is to ensure that you have a solid understanding of the Texas Lift Approved Provider Application Process. That includes the timeline, how it will be scored, the evidence you will need to provide, the review process, and your next steps as an applicant.
003Please note though that we will be working in partnership with Rivet Education on this project given their expertise in reviewing professional development providers and their deep knowledge of the Texas context. So, here's our agenda for today. I'll give you a moment to review it. I do want to highlight that the timeline is very important given the comprehensive nature of this application. Um so as you listen, I invite you to think of the time that will be spent completing the application, who from your team will need to inform and collaborate on this process that is pretty comprehensive. Um so think of that timeline and think of your current um structures and priorities that you still allow for this um application deadline to be met. All right. Thanks, Perla. So let's kick things off with an overview
004of the project and like she mentioned, the upcoming timeline. So TEA will release the Leadership and Instructional Foundations for Texas or Lift program and state-approved provider list in September of 2026 concurrent with the release of the LASO 5 grant application for school systems. The Lift program integrates key aspects of Texas instructional leadership, strong foundations planning, strong foundations implementation, and Texas Lesson Study. So uh if any of you are familiar with those previous uh TEA programs and initiatives, uh Lift pulls them all together in an integrated program. We want to make sure that districts have the opportunity to partner with high-quality providers who can support all Lift activities through their LASO 5 grant. These activities were formerly part of these uh previous initiatives like I mentioned. So when providers gain approved status through the application and
005vetting process, they'll experience these benefits as a Lift provider. They'll get wrap-around training. They'll build expertise in Blue Bonnet Learning, high-quality instructional materials. They'll receive ongoing coaching and support from TEA. That's actually Perla and I. That's our team. That's our job. Um leverage research-based instructional practices to support participating districts, and the opportunity to contract with those school systems or districts who are awarded lots of five grant funds. And so here you see the timeline for the application and review process. It's going to open up on May 18th. We posted that information on TEA's Lasso 5 supple webpage along with the link to the application portal. I know many of you have already been in there. We've seen some engagement and questions come up with that, but the application itself won't go live until May 18th.
006Please note that the deadline is 11:59 p.m. Central Time on Monday, July 13th. We aim to announce which applicants have been approved by mid-September so we can fully publish our public-facing state-approved list by Monday, September 21st. So while our lift program is the flagship curriculum and instruction grant and uh for our Texas school systems uh through our Lasso grants, prospective provider organizations will also have the opportunity through this application to opt into another smaller or less managed grant program called the school improvement curriculum and instruction grant. And so I'm going to take a second here just to look more specifically at the key aspects of these two programs that you'll have the opportunity to support should you gain approval through the application and vetting process. And so lift, like I said, is our it's our
007big bet. It's our big program. It's our flagship curriculum and instruction grant. It's a multi-year program supporting uh systems statewide. It provides professional learning implementation support and coaching aligned to TEA priorities and requirements. And just a really important thing to note uh lift and Blue Bonnet Learning are inextricably tied. Um it is part of the scope um required for lift. So when you think lift, think Blue Bonnet Learning. And it represents the largest share of our Lasso grant funding from this last cycle, and we anticipate that that will likely be the case in future Lasso cycles as well. So this is a program that uh we're really looking to have some really big impact across the state of Texas, and it will be something that we continue to lobby the legislature in future ledge sessions
008for additional funds around this program because we really see the value in its comprehensive nature. The SI CISG grant is smaller. It's a one-year campus level grant serving those Title 1 school improvement campuses. It doesn't require support of Blue Bonnet though it does focus on other SBOE approved high-quality instructional materials in math and RLA. It does receive a smaller portion of LASO grant funds, i.e. there are fewer school systems and campuses that'll be in this program than what we anticipate for Lift and that support is limited into specific awarded campuses. So just the overall scope of the CISG grant is smaller. Applicants will have the opportunity through this supple application to support both programs. But if you're looking to prioritize between the two, our recommendation would be to make sure that you are applying for
009the Lift one. If you want to expand the opportunities that you could support school districts, then the CISG grant could be an additional great opportunity for you all. There's also the opportunity to opt into only the CISG grant, but again, it's much smaller in scale and so there might not be the opportunity to contract with as many districts through that grant initiative as we anticipate with Lift both this upcoming year and going into future LASO cycles. So now that we've identified the grant programs providers will support through the application, let's talk about the actual application process. It has three main components. First, the the eligibility screener. Next, the core of the application which we're going to break down further in just a moment. And the public profile information and additional information portion. So let's zoom
010into each of these pieces. The eligibility screener is a list of assurances that the applicant agrees to should they become approved. It's designed to make sure that the application is more efficient by limit eliminating any applicants who don't meet our basic requirements. Moving into that second piece, the core of application, it's designed to assess applicants' ability to provide all lift services at a high-quality level. And so, you see underneath that number two on the slide, uh those numbers beneath represent the other pieces that go into the core of the application. So, there is a high-quality instructional materials expertise templates for lift, so that'd be Blue Bonnet if you're paying attention, or non-Blue Bonnet HQIM for the CISD grants. And so, we'll dive into that in just a second. Overarching approach to professional learning and capacity
011building. So, how well does your organization support um professional learning and supporting the capacity of district and campus leadership? Your approach to ongoing cycles of professional learning and capacity building for leaders and teachers. So, really thinking about the full school system ecosystem there. And also, your approach to um using data to measure impact and improve. So, those are the main things within the application that we are looking to assess through various indicators, and we'll get into those in just a moment. But, you see those minute um minimum eligibility scores on the side of that table there as well. So, that's the bar to meet the minimum eligibility through those components of the main application. And then lastly, we have uh public profile information and so, each provider that gains approval through the application and vetting
012process will be featured on a website that Texas districts can use to select providers who the who are the best fit for their local context. And so, the public profile information is used to populate each approved provider's page, so you'll have like a profile page there. Um but, know that that portion of the application is not scored. It's simply what you want to show out there to the world should you gain approval. Um due to the short timeline that we have to conduct our reviews, applicants will be required to submit all three of these components by the July 13th deadline. We anticipate the time required to complete this application will vary for different organizations, so definitely don't wait until like that last day or whatever or even that last week of that deadline. We encourage
013you to get started on it as soon as you can and work in collaboration with your organization to make sure that all of these component pieces can be submitted by that July 13th deadline. Uh we'll discuss this in greater detail in a few minutes, but applications will be scored in a sequential manner, like a gateway manner, um where if you have to pass um the first portion to move on to the next and so on. So again, we'll get a little bit more into that process later in the um later in the webinar. The application and review process are guided by a detailed scoring and evidence guide. I'll drop that in the chat in just a second. It's based on decades of research around the characteristics of professional learning and capacity building that are most
014likely to result in improved outcomes for students and teachers. Uh so that's always going to be our North Star is how can we improve student outcomes? How can we make sure that school systems are really supported through our grant programs? And so um this application is really trying to suss that out from our prospective provider organizations who apply. Uh I'm going to spend a little bit more time uh giving you an overview of those indicators in just a second. Though we're not going to have time to dive in deeply to the entire scoring and evidence guide, but we definitely recommend that you spend a good amount of time looking through this resource uh before and as you compile your application. So I'm going to drop that into the link for us right now. All right.
015Next I'm going to pass it over to Perla for a little bit more information on our eligibility screener. Thanks for the timeline and the scoring and evidence guide, Zach. Um, let's look at our eligibility screener. This is the first step step in your application process. It is designed to make the application more efficient by screening out applicants who did not meet TA's specific requirements. Providers who do not meet all the requirements listed on this slide will not move on to the next stage of the application process. Um, please note that the language on the eligibility screener has been refined for clarity. Even if you have reviewed other application materials, please take a moment to review the eligibility screener requirements listed on this slide carefully. Again, even if you applied in previous cycles, please make sure
016that you look at this, um, language very carefully. Um, another important concept I wanted to lift from the screener is that providers must agree to build capacity through a comprehensive professional learning model that includes training, coaching, and H- >> [clears throat] >> HQIM implementation support as described in indicator E2. Um, in-person supports are expected as part of this program. So, take a minute to look at this. And now let's take a moment to look at the second half of the eligibility screener indicators. Again, the intent is to, um, let TA and to let you as an organization know whether this program is a good fit for your organization early on. So, again, if you don't pass all the components of the eligibility screener, then you will not be able to advance to the next step.
017I hope you can see in the screener, um, how it's designed, um, to make sure that there's clarity behind the program and the requirements, um, in in moving on to the next stage, which can be the most time-consuming. Yeah, thanks, Perla. Um and like I said, uh that scoring evidence guide has all of this information represented. You have to scroll down through the document a little bit, but if it's helpful to follow along, we are going to be diving into these indicators uh kind of slide by slide, uh but we're not going to read them all at you. Um but just to kind of flag what they're meant to do and where they live so that you can reference them, like we said, as you're preparing for and as you're compiling your application itself. So,
018let's dive into that application. So, let's say uh your organization says yes to each one of those eligibility screeners, then you'll automatically uh move forward to the next stage of the application. Uh so, let's dive into that a little bit more. Um so, I'm going to provide a brief overview of each of those indicators in each section of the application, but again, please note that they're also represented in that scoring evidence guide I dropped into the chat. Um so, that's going to contain a lot more information, and you'll have that as a a place to go back to for reference. So, what this application's designed to do is assess providers' ability to provide comprehensive, cohesive, and high-quality set of services to Texas educators. And it has five sections of the main application. So, first is
019the demonstration of the HQIM expertise via expertise templates. You'll be able to find those in the application portal itself. You'll download them. You'll then be able to edit them and then re-upload them once they're complete. You'll then detail your overarching approach to professional learning and capacity building, as well as your approach to ongoing cycles of professional learning and capacity building for leaders, ongoing cycles of professional learning for teachers, and how you use data to measure impact, plan, and improve. And so, applicants must pass each section of the application uh to be considered as a lift or CISD approved provider. The first thing applicants need to do is prove their expertise in high-quality instructional materials. More specifically for the lift program, applicants must demonstrate basic knowledge of the state of Texas Blue Bonnet Learning Curriculum in
020the three content areas that were approved by the State Board of Education and are currently in the field across the state. For the CISG grant, applicants must demonstrate knowledge in at least one non-Blue Bonnet SBOE approved high-quality instructional material in RLA and at least one state board approved non-Blue Bonnet HQIM math by meeting the indicators in this section. So, H1 for RLA, H2 for math with full points. And again, just to reiterate, for lifts, applicants will be required to submit three HQIM um templates that are specific to Blue Bonnet, the K-5 RLA, K-5 math, and secondary mathematics. A common question that we get from prospective providers as well, "We're more specialized in one content area. Can we just do math?" And the answer is no. Our districts, when they're awarded, most of them receive multiple
021awards, and as a way to make sure that we're streamlining support and providing a lot of coherence to school systems through their grant, we think it's really important that they are able to work with one approved provider for lift. Um we've seen in past initiatives where folks were contracting with multiple providers, and that can create some lack of clarity and lack of coherence with school systems. So, we are really betting on that one layer of support coming from one approved provider organization, thus uh the need to demonstrate capacity and knowledge in RLA and math contents. The next set of indicators are designed to evaluate the quality of applicants' overarching approach to professional learning capacity building. There are four indicators for this overarching approach, and applicants must score six out of a possible eight points to
022pass this section. So, take just a second here to review these indicators. So, again, this is the overarching approach. And then, uh you'll see here in a second, we get a little bit more specific by particular stakeholder group. The next section of indicators are designed to evaluate the quality of applicants' professional learning and capacity-building services for district and uh campus-level leaders, including uh principal supervisors. So, there are seven indicators for this section, and applicants must score 10 out of the possible 14 points to pass this section. So, again, we're going to take a second to review this, but one thing I did want to call out here is that Lift is really designed to support uh a school system uh from district leadership down to campus leadership, and then teachers as well, and always focusing
023on the capacity building of that work. We really believe that for this type of work to be sustainable in the long run, we need to be able to build campuses and leaders uh our district leaders' capacity to really move this work forward. So, when we're not supporting them day-to-day uh or even after the extent of the grant is over, that they can carry that work forward. So, we are as much thinking about the supports that our providers give to these school systems, as well as how are they building up the capacity within that school system so that this work can be sustained in the future. So, again, take a moment to review these indicators. >> All right, we're going to move ahead to the next one. So these indicators are designed to evaluate the quality
024of applicants professional learning and capacity building services for teachers. There are five indicators in the section. Applicants must score eight out of a possible 10 points to pass this section. So again, take a moment to review this section's indicators. And just a quick aside here, I know TEA there's a lot of acronyms that people I've heard that we're kind of like the military in how many times we use acronyms for various things. So just to call things out here, TEKS I know we're all familiar with that, but our Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. RBIS is the research-based instructional practices. So that is a suite of training that we deliver to approved providers who then turn around and deliver that to school systems. So that's just a call out there in case you were wondering. Moving
025on, the last set of indicators in the application are designed to evaluate the extent to which the applicant collects and uses data to measure their impact as well as to plan and improve their services. There are six indicators in the section and applicants must score seven out of a possible 10 points to pass this section. So this will be our last really dense slide to take a few moments to review independently, but please do so before move on. >> All right. So, just to triple down, these are all that scoring and evidence guide. So, again, that will be your uh main reference and resource as you are um submitting your application. So, I wanted to provide a brief overview of what Oh, sorry, I just provided a brief overview of what applicants need to prove
026they can do. This slide provides an overview of how applicants will prove it via the application submission requirements. As I mentioned previously, Lift applicants will need to submit three Blue Bonnet Learning product-specific HQIM expertise templates. SICISG applicants must submit two HQIM expertise templates to prove they have expertise in at least one non-Blue Bonnet HQIM for RLA and at least one non-Blue Bonnet HQIM for math. Um so, if you're putting those two pieces together, should your organization want to support both programs, that would be at least a total of five HQIM expertise templates, three for Blue Bonnet and at least one RLA non-Blue Bonnet HQIM for SICISG, as well as one math one for CISG. >> [snorts] >> To provide expertise, um oh, and I should say, when we say HQIM, that has a specific state
027definition. Um so, those are the materials that have been approved by the um through the EMRA process by the State Board of Education. That can be found online. We can also link that in our resources um when we follow up from this webinar. So, to provide expertise in the overarching leadership, teacher, and data indicators, applicants must submit some artifacts. And so, those artifacts are meant to demonstrate their ability to meet these indicators that you see here, O L T and D. And so, that set of artifacts, uh we we there's no such thing as the correct artifact, so we do give applicants a large degree of freedom to choose what artifacts they think best demonstrates their ability to meet these indicators. Um so, that's again why it's important for applicants to read the scoring and
028evidence guide really closely, but consider submitting sample uh presentations with facilitator notes, um handouts, guidebooks, course syllabi, content or sorry, client work plans, client reflection questions, coaching notes, etc. And so, although it's not required, as you're putting together those artifacts that demonstrate your ability to hit these um indicators, it's going to be easiest for our reviewers if you can put those artifacts within one content area. Um so, let's say that, "Hey, we've got a lot of expertise supporting RLA. Here's the artifacts that we put together to support those school districts with RLA curriculum." Um those uh would be sticking to RLA through those artifacts and the executive summary would be helpful. It's not required, but um that's just a recommendation that we have. Along with artifacts, applicants must submit an executive summary that kind of
029ties those artifacts together, and it provides an overview of your evidence within those artifacts and describes how your organization's professional learning services meet those specific indicators. And again, the uh scoring and evidence guide goes into more detail there about what that should include, um but that kind of ties all those things together. Our goal through this process is to ensure accurate reviews, and we do what we can to help providers put their best foot forward. Therefore, TEA may follow up after you've submitted your application for any additional information uh during that review window. Um it's not a common thing, but should we have, you know, questions or need to follow up or gain some additional information from you, uh we would request that, and organizations who are applying would have 24 hours to get back
030to us. That way we can make sure we add that to their application as we review it. Here are a few tips for completing your organization's application. So, if possible, uh, submit the artifacts, uh, focus on the the services you provide on one HQIM. So, again, providers need to be able to support both math and RLA, but as you're putting together the specific artifacts for your application, uh, one tip that we have just for kind of coherence through that application is to stick to one content area if possible. Number two, prioritize artifacts that have a direct connection to high-quality instructional materials. Three, use the executive summary to provide the context for those artifacts and how they connect to those indicators. And include any, um, specifically if you've had Texas-based experience or support in previous TEA
031grant initiatives, like, "Hey, we supported Strong Foundations." or "We supported, um, the Crimson Initiative back, uh, during COVID." Those would be great things to, uh, include in that executive summary just to detail your experience and your expertise. Uh, number four, there's no right set of artifacts. It doesn't have to be a certain type, of, uh, resource. But again, they're typically client-facing or school system-facing, uh, documents or that detail your planning to support those school districts, um, with that executive summary that kind of ties them all together and shows how they meet the indicators throughout the application. Uh, number five, please do not include external links to the artifacts or the executive summary. Um, reviewers will not open links. So, it needs to be contained within the submission in the application itself. And then, like I
032mentioned a second ago, number six, if we have any additional information that we need to follow up on, reviewers, uh, or applicants would have 24 hours to turn that around and get that to us so we can include that in our review of your application. All right, I'm going to hand it back over to Perla. Exactly. Let's take a look at one of the last steps of your application, your public profile template. Um this template is meant to um be a part of the process that gives um a us information to create a public-facing page for those that are approved to be Lift providers. This page is used widely by those seeking services, and I'm going to drop the link in the chat for it so you can take a look. Um it is public-facing,
033it's used by school systems to learn about approved providers, um and we collect the information to be able to um publish this site as soon as the notifications are sent. The application process, this Lasso 5 process is set, but the intent of having uh providers, approved providers, published right before the Lasso 5 window opens. So, hence the importance of you submitting this information as part of the application process. Um applicants will need to submit the information on this slide to inform their public-facing profile. Please note that the requirements to provide information about your current team size and capacity to address demand is just for TA's planning purposes. This is not going to be made public, it simply helps TA plan for anticipated demand based on Lasso 5 awards. Um so, take a minute to just
034review some of the information that you will need to collect for your organization and be able to provide as part of one of the last steps of this application process. And one thing I'll add there, Perla, um that sales email address, sales phone number, uh please do make sure that that is accurate. That is likely the contact that school systems will reach out to should they be curious about contracting with you. So, making sure that that information's accurate will be key so that um school systems can contact you appropriately. Absolutely. There's a feature on the public-facing site that says contact this organization and that's the email address that this contact points will go to. So, making sure that it is accurate is very, very important. Thanks, Zach. All right, let's now look at a summary
035of what we have been chatting through, what the application looks like. Again, if you're interested in being featured on the provider list, this is a summary of what you will need. So, your eligibility screener, your application, your public profile, and then additional questions that will be provided. On the next slide, you'll see a recap of the application, also. It's another way to represent the components of the application and how they are ordered. First, like we talked through, there's that eligibility screener and those assurances that are required and basic qualifications for you don't agree with all those statements and you're not able to move on to the next phase of the application, which is to submit your HRI and expertise templates, which are linked in the application portal for you to download. Here's where the different
036template requirements, depending on the programs your organization wishes to support, come into play. So, if you wish to be a Lift approved provider, then you'll be looking at where the cursor is to the left of your screen and those are the templates that will be required. If you're looking to be an provider, then you'll be looking at the right-hand side where the cursor is. And again, applying for both is recommended and encouraged because it gives you the most flexibility. I also want to name, like Zach said earlier in the presentation, that the Lift approval will grant you access to the biggest grant funding available, what the ESCISG approval is meant to complement and add services to the lift cycle. So, just take a second to look at those two tracks and you are able to
037apply for one or both of those. So, next all applicants, like I just mentioned, regardless of the program you're seeking to support, will provide a set of artifacts along with an executive summary that details how those artifacts demonstrate your org's expertise and the ability to meet the rubric indicators. I invite you to lean into the tips that Zach just gave you, and make sure that the artifacts that you submit are quality over quantity. There is a page um limit to those artifacts, and really what we're looking for is a complete narrative of how your organization is able to provide the services that are part of our lift program. Um so, don't worry about quantity, we really are focused on quality and the narrative that those artifacts will provide our reviewers. Um and then lastly, that
038public profile information that will be public-facing on our website for school systems to select the provider, providing us um you know, those pieces of information about your organization just facilitates us publishing um those providers that are approved. Let's look at some additional information questions. Um these questions are going to be part of your application process, and they're simply for TEA's planning purposes. Similar to the one that said, "Are you able to grow your program and how much?" Um these are reported on public profiles for organizations who gain approval as the providers, um but also help us um just gauge your ability to meet the demand that we anticipate based on current and available funding. Yeah, sorry, just to clarify there, Perla. Um these these will not be reported to the public. Um like like she
039She these are just for TEA's planning purposes. Um but one thing you see here is kind of a preference for Texas-based um experience. Um Lift will have a high number of in-person touchpoints. And so, this is something that we're hoping to um understand about your organization. Are you based in Texas? Can you grow in Texas? How many employees do you have here? Uh that that has some practicality. If you're not based in Texas and or you don't have significant staff available in Texas, um some of the travel requirements for in-person touchpoints could be pretty uh could be really tough to pull off. Um so, we do have a preference for those who are either in Texas or can staff up in Texas to be able to provide that support to school districts. Yeah. And now,
040Seth is going to walk us through the review process. Yeah, exactly. So, um TEA's committed to ensuring that TEA Lift Approved Provider List and the organizations highlighted within it are best in class and our thorough review process is led by a trained team of educators from Texas and across the country. Reviewers assess whether professional learning partners provide significant evidence of robust HQIM-aligned services. So, in other words, the goal of this initiative is to ensure that Texas school systems have a variety of qualified providers with whom they can partner to provide support for all Lift-required activities. So, let's talk about those reviewers a little bit more. Each reviewer is selected for their expertise in HQIM, professional learning, and capacity building. Rivet provides reviewers with additional training on the eval process for the Texas Lasso Approved Provider
041List prior to reviewing applications. So, they are fully trained in this specific process. Review teams use the scoring and evidence guide and submitted documents to look for evidence of that robust HQIM-aligned services. And if there is a discrepancy between the reviewers as they are scoring your applications, then it is flagged for an administrator to come in and settle that discrepancy to make sure that there is fairness throughout the process. Speaking of the process, uh dive a little bit more into that. And so, although providers are required to submit all application materials by the July 13th deadline, they will be reviewed in a gateway fashion. And we've referenced that throughout this time, but this is more specific. First, we shared uh that applicants must pass those eligibility screeners by responding yes to each question. So, if
042there's something in those questions that isn't true for your organization, we do encourage you to answer that honestly, but please know that would exit you from the application. These are kind of our basic requirements. And so, anybody um who doesn't meet those, um it's just not going to behoove them to move forward and waste their time on the rest of the application. In that second stage, reviewers will evaluate applicants' HQIM expertise templates for the extent to which they uh they can provide support corresponding to the HQIM requirements for the programs they're applying to support. So, again, um applicants who fail to provide that expertise in the required Blue Bonnet Learning expertise templates for Lift or the non-Blue Bonnet RLA and Math templates for the CISG grant, if you don't meet the bar for that expertise,
043that's the point at which you would be exited from the process and the application. Applicants who prove they can provide those necessary HQIM expertise will then move on to the third and final stage of review. And that third stage is where our reviewers are evaluating applicants' set of artifacts and that executive summary to determine to the extent to which the provider passes each section of the indicators. So, um applicants who fail this stage would not be approved. Applicants who pass this final stage will be considered for final approver approval, excuse me. And if approved, their information will be shared on that public profile, that Lift approved provider list, and our SAP webpage. So, lastly, I should state here too that TEA will be considering agency priorities and capacity in making decisions on final approval. Therefore,
044showing proficiency on the scoring and evidence guide does not guarantee approval to join the state approved provider list. It simply gets you to that final stage to be considered for approval. And then we have a you know, this application is part of a wider vetting process to make sure that we are selecting the best opportunities for our districts to contract with providers. All right, it's time for next steps. What should you as an organization be doing in order to prepare for this application timeline and window, right? So, the next slide will this slide will show us a summary of next steps that you can take as an organization to be part of this process. So, first and foremost, we encourage you to look at that scoring and evidence guide. That is going to be your
045anchor, your north star during the process to be able to um look at all the indicators that we are prioritizing that support our lift program. So, please look at the scoring and evidence guide, S18. Um we also want to make sure that you're very clear on the timeline to submit the application. The application will open on May 18th and it'll close on July 13th at 11:59 Central Time. So, during that window, interested providers must submit all of their parts of the application and providers are encouraged to work ahead of time. Please note that you do not need to wait until the deadline or close to the deadline to submit it. Once the portal is open, you are welcome to submit those applications. Um I do want to note on a technical note that only one
046person per the organization will be able to log into the provider application portal. So, you only need one account and one member to log on, but we expect you to share that login with multiple people at the organization as appropriate in order to complete the application. So, again, you'll have one login for one organization, um and then you can share that login to be able to complete the application. Um we anticipate being able to notify applicants of their approval status in mid to late September, again, to coincide with our Lasso 5 um application process so that as um school systems are applying to be a part of Lasso 5, they can also see who the provider is they can engage with on for that cycle. A couple of additional resources for you. Um again, that
047application portal will have your FAQ, your scoring and evidence guide, and a recording of this slides. Um that will be coming soon as early as Monday, uh but definitely next week. Um so, we wanted to name that that portal will have those resources available to you. We'll continue to use our distribution list for communication and to share out the recording of this webinar along with other resources. Um part of the reason we're being so intentional in sharing these resources in multiple ways is that our TA state approved provider list webpage is currently undergoing an um overhaul. It's being um transferred and modified in service of um our stakeholders. So, we want to make sure that as this transition of the TA state approved provider list website is happening that we are not um missing the
048opportunity to give you information that you need. So, you'll have enough a chance to get it from email, the portal, and the TA SAP web page um when it's up and running. Um all right. Yeah, and I should I should state there, too. It's um it's the the whole TEA website's going through a big overhaul. So, if you are interacting with the agency in other capacities or you use the website frequently, please know that the month of May um it is going through an overhaul site-wide, not just the SAP page. And so, we're going to do our best to make sure that this information is represented there as well. There just may be a delay depending on some of the technical aspects of that website overhaul. So, like Perla said, the application portal itself will
049contain some of these resources, and then I will follow up from the SAAP email address, [email protected], once I've been able to collate these materials from the webinar. I'll be able to email those out to the distribution list, which is also how you signed up for this webinar. On top of that, we'll have a couple of opportunities for office hours to support you through the kind of the technical aspects of the application itself. And so, whenever I follow up in that email, I'll also provide two opportunities for you to join an optional office hours. It won't be structured in terms of programming. It'll be a reactive, responsive space to you all as you're going through the application for any technical questions. One note there, we won't be able to provide any sort of like advice on
050the best way to, you know, put your best foot forward. It'll mostly just make sure that you're meeting requirements and that we're supporting you with any questions that you have around the content or requirements or any of the technical aspects of the the application portal itself. We've come to the end of our presentation, so we'll stop recording at this time to address questions that have come up in the chat that will be a part of the FAQ that is