Friday, March 25, 2022
Earlier this week, Deputy State Superintendent John Johnson shared important updates regarding the Get Kids Ahead (GKA) Initiative. We are sharing the important updates and providing additional WUFAR coding options.
Thank you for those of you who have already opted in by completing the simple attestation on the Department of Administration’s (DOA) portal. For those who have not yet opted in, this is a reminder of the fast-approaching April 1, 2022, deadline. To access the funding, public school districts and independent charter schools will need to opt into the program and attest that the funds will be used for allowable purposes by April 1, 2022. School personnel may opt in via the attestation portal. To confirm that your district has opted in, see the most current list, updated on March 22. If your district or school is on the list, you do not need to do anything further. If you are not on the list, DOA does not have your attestation at the time the above list was pulled.
Available to All Wisconsin Public and Independent Charter Schools
The GKA Initiative funding opportunity is available to all public and independent charter schools in Wisconsin to help build Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems (CSMHS). CSMHS provide a full continuum of services and supports that promote wellbeing in all staff and students. See the FAQ document that covers the common questions we are receiving.
Additional Information and Reporting
The Department of Public Instruction (DPI) recently added additional information about reporting and funding documentation on its GKA Initiative webpage. Recipients of GKA dollars should code the funds as Source 780 revenue. Those who opt in to receive the funding will not be required to submit a budget or plan to access the funding. At the end of each school year, districts and independent charter schools that receive the GKA funds will be required to provide a brief narrative description of how they spent the GKA Initiative funds to improve or expand mental health-related educational programming, training, staff support, or assistance for students and families. If GKA funds have not yet been encumbered at the time of reporting, recipients will be asked to provide a brief narrative description of how they plan to use the funds.
Those districts and independent charter schools who also receive the state School Based Mental Health Services Grant (SBMH) will submit one end-of-year report that satisfies the reporting requirements for both the GKA and the SBMH funding sources. The end-of-year report will include a brief narrative and a list of mental health system activities checkboxes.
Funding Administration
The funds for the Getting Kids Ahead Initiative are administered by the DOA. Federal funds administered by another state agency other than DPI should be coded to Source 780. DPI does not assign project codes to funds issued by other entities. If a local optional code is needed, we recommend using a project number in the 600, 700 or 900 series as DPI typically does not assign project codes in these series. Additionally, the Aids Register only includes funds administered by DPI. Funds administered by another state agency are not included in the Aids Register.
Thank you for your continued efforts to prioritize mental health and wellbeing of students and staff. If you have questions about the portal or this program, please contact getmhs@dpi.wi.gov.