Dear Prospective Applicants:

2024 Request for Applications for the California Center for Inclusive College Grant

The California Department of Education (CDE), Special Education Division is pleased to announce the availability of the Request for Applications (RFA) for the California Center for Inclusive College (CCIC) Grant. California strives to establish and expand upon existing inclusive college programs with the goal of providing access to college programs for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities at four-year public postsecondary educational institutions. Comprehensive transition and postsecondary programs are critical as California continues to work toward improving education and postschool outcomes for students and young adults with disabilities.

The Budget Act of 2024 appropriated $2 million to the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) to award one grant to a county office of education (COE) to implement the following in accordance with California Education Code (EC) Section 66032:

a) Increase awareness of, and access to, inclusive and experiential postsecondary education and employment opportunities for students with intellectual disabilities through degree, certificate, or nondegree programs that ideally include an independent living component.

b) Establish statewide support and coordination of the dissemination of information regarding programs and services for students with intellectual disabilities.

c) Increase access to meaningful postsecondary education credentials and work experiences to afford students with intellectual disabilities inclusive and meaningful campus experiences to prepare for gainful employment and community living.

d) Support the establishment and expansion of programs on college campuses that model inclusivity of all students, including those with intellectual disabilities.

Additionally, the selected COE shall fulfill the responsibilities for the CCIC grant pursuant to EC Section 66032.2, which shall also include convening an advisory workgroup, with which to consult, consisting of representatives from at least two, but not more than five, existing inclusive college programs throughout the state.

All applicants must first submit a Notice of Intent to Submit Application to the Programs and Partnerships Unit by 5 p.m. on September 30, 2024. Incomplete, late, or incorrectly formatted Notices of Intent will not be accepted. The Notice of Intent is a prerequisite to applying, and therefore applications will not be accepted without a Notice of Intent on file.

All applicants must submit a complete application, including all required components, to the Programs and Partnerships Unit by 5 p.m. on October 9, 2024. Incomplete, late, or incorrectly formatted applications will not be scored or considered for approval.

A technical assistance webinar to review all parts of the RFA will take place on September 27, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to noon. Interested applicants may register for this webinar by accessing the CCIC RFA Zoom Webinar Registration web page .

If you have any questions regarding the CCIC RFA, please contact the Programs and Partnerships Unit by email at PPL@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

Rachel Heenan, Ed.D., Director
Special Education Division

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