Texas Even Start Administrative Manual

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June 2004, (Revised January 2008)

Appendices

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Even Start Acronyms

ABE, Adult Basic Education. Sometimes referred to as pre-GED, this is the category of education for adult students who are functioning academically up to the 9th grade level.

ADA, Americans With Disabilities Act. A federal act that seeks to ensure accessibility to persons with disabilities.

ADA, Average Daily Attendance. The formula for computing the amount of funds a public school district will receive to provide educational services to its students. Even Start students who are not enrolled in PK-12 are not included in ADA funding calculations.

AE, Adult Education. A component of Even Start that is often provided by program partners.

AEGIS, Adult Education Guidance Information System. AEGIS synthesizes data entered into TESPIRS, TEAMS, financial reports, PEIMS and grant applications to decide whether programs are meeting program indicators of program quality. AEGIS conducts its desk review quarterly and issues a report for each program.

ARD, Admission, Review and Dismissal Process. The process by which an individualized education program (IEP) is developed for a student in a special education program and the rights and responsibilities of a parent concerning the process. Meetings conducted as part of this process are referred to as ARD meetings.

ASE, Adult Secondary Education. This is the category of adult education that prepares students to take the GED exam. ASE Students function from approximately 9 th grade through 12 th grade levels.

BEST Plus. The standardized test required for placement and progress testing of adult English language learners in Texas.

BEST Literacy. A measure of English reading and writing abilities for students of English as a Second Language

BINS, Bayley Infant Neurological Screener. A state-approved early childhood screening instrument for ages birth through age three.

CBO, Community Based Organization. A community organization, not a school district, that may partner with school districts for service delivery.

CCS, Child Care Services. A service provided to eligible clients (individuals) through WorkSource.

CIRCLE, Center for Improving the Readiness of Children for Reading and Education. CIRCLE is a program of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Medical School. CIRCLE promotes research-based early childhood education and conducts staff development in the areas of early childhood education and early childhood assessment.

CLIO, Classroom Literacy Interventions and Outcomes (CLIO). A national research study that incorporates staff development, the Play and Learning Strategies parent education program and the Let’s Begin 3-5 year old curriculum.

DSC, Developing Skills Checklist. One of the approved early childhood assessments for Even Start participants aged 4 and 5 years.

EC or ECE, Early Childhood Education. A component of Even Start. Programs can offer this service directly or through partnerships.

ECIPQ, Early Childhood Indicators of Program Quality. Performance standards for Even Start programs. ECIPQs are listed in the grant application, federal guidance document and in TESPIRS.

EFF, Equipped for the Future. A national initiative through NIFL and LINCS created to be a framework to define what adults need to know and be able to do in their three roles as workers, community members and parents/family members.

EL Civics, English Literacy and Civics Education. A federal demonstration project that targets English and Civics instruction for immigrant adults.

ESC, Education Service Center. TEA has divided the state into service areas called “regions.” There are 20 regions, each an ESC. ESCs provide ongoing staff development for education personnel and house a TETN studio for live interactive broadcasts.

ESL, English As A Second Language. This term is used to describe English language instruction for students whose native language is something other than English.

ESOL, English for Speakers of Other Languages.

FERPA, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. This Act governs the confidentiality of student records.

GED, General Education Development. GED is an alternative credential to the high school diploma. Occasionally used to describe instruction that prepares adults to take the GED examination.

HCDE, Harris County Department of Education. A state department that has a mission to advance education in partnership with the educational community. It is located in Harris County, Texas and offers programs including adult education, Head Start, after school programming and special education. HCDE administers adult education and family literacy for the state of Texas.

HIPPY, Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters. An evidence-based home visiting curriculum for use with children aged 3 to 5 years.

HOME, Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment. A parent education assessment that is conducted in the student’s home.

IEP, Individual Education Plan. A document describing children’s skills and stating goals for services as well as strategies for achieving those goals. An IEP is often used by classroom teachers as a the outline for serving special needs children.

ILA, Interactive Literacy Activities Time. This component of Even Start is intergenerational learning, where parents and children learn together. ILA can be provided directly by programs or by program partners.

IPQ, Indicators of Program Quality. Specified performance standards that all programs must track and report.

ISD, Independent School District. The name for public school districts in Texas.

LEA, Local Education Agency. Typically, this refers to public school districts.

LEP, Limited English Proficient. A sub-population of students who are not proficient in English. TEA requires school districts to report data for this sub-population.

LIFT Act, Literacy Involves Families Together Act. Legislation passed in 2000 to improve and expand family literacy services nationwide and strengthen the nation’s family literacy infrastructure.

MELD, Minnesota Early Learning Design. A national non-profit family service organization based in Minneapolis. MELD is a parent education program and family support model with programs for a variety of different populations.

MOU, Memorandum of Understanding. A written agreement between entities that indicates a willingness to work together for a specific goal. The responsibilities and contributions of each entity are delineated in the agreement.

NAEYC, National Association for the Education of Young Children. An organization of early childhood educators and others dedicated to improving the quality of programs for children from birth through third grade. NAEYC affiliate groups work to improve professional practice and working conditions in early childhood education and to build public support for high quality early childhood programs.

NCLB, No Child Left Behind. Legislation passed in 2001 that sets achievement expectations for all children in the United States. This legislation increased qualifications for paraprofessional staff and established criteria for “highly qualified” professional staff. Sometimes referred to as “Nickel B.”

NCFL, National Center for Family Literacy. A national non-profit organization established to help parents and children achieve their greatest potential together through quality literacy programs. NCFL offers training for Even Start staff and hosts a national conference annually.

NIFL, National Institute for Family Literacy. An institute authorized under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act in the Workforce Investment Act and the No Child Left Behind Act. Its purpose is to provide national leadership regarding literacy, coordinate literacy services and policy and serve as a national resource for adult education and literacy programs.

NOGA, Notice of Grant Award. This is the official notification that a grant has been awarded to a grantee. NOGAs are issued by the Texas Education Agency.

PAT, Parents As Teachers. A research-based parenting curriculum for home visiting for children aged prenatal through kindergarten.

PD, Professional Development. An general term that refers to training for program staff.

PE, Parent Education. The component of Even Start that develops parenting skills in parents. Parent Education may be provided directly by the program or by program partners.

PEIMS, Public Education Information and Management System. The statewide database for student accounting in Texas public schools.

PLN, Parent Learning Network. Sponsored by the Texas Association of School Boards, PLN offers parent education curriculum for home-based instruction and center-based instruction.

PPE, Practical Parent Education. A parent education curriculum for use in group settings.

PPVT III. Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Third Edition. An assessment of English receptive vocabulary.

Q, Quarter. The program year is divided into four quarters, each with its own reporting deadline. The term “4Q04” refers to the fourth quarter of the 2004 funding year.

RFA, Request for Application. A formal announcement that grant funds are available along with the forms and instructions for potential grantees to apply for the funds.

RFP, Request for Proposal. A formal request for proposals. Proposals can be for grant funds, presentations or publications.

SBOE, State Board of Education. The commissioner of education and the member elected state board of education oversee education in Texas according to the Texas Education Code.

SCANS, Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills. A commission to determine the skills that young people need to succeed in the world of work. The commission issued a report in 1992 outlining recommendations for learning. That document, called the SCANS Report, is a resource for adult education.

SSI, Supplemental Security Income. Social security funds paid to individuals who are poor and disabled whether or not the individual has worked in the past. SSI child’s disability benefits are paid to children who are not yet 18 years old.

SSDI, Social Security Disability Benefits. Disability benefits that are paid to individuals who have worked in recent years.

SAS, Standard Application System. A standard form for grant applications for federal or state funds.

TABE, Test of Adult Basic Education. This is the state-specified adult education assessment for adult basic education and adult secondary education. All state and federally-funded programs are required to report TABE scores for adult basic education and adult secondary education students.

TAEYC, Texas Association for the Education of Young Children. A state affiliate of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

TAKS, Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills. This is the Texas assessment for public school children. It is first administered in grade 3. Children must pass the TAKS in grade 3 in order to be promoted to the next grade. High school students must pass an exit level TAKS to receive a diploma in Texas.

TALAE, Texas Association for Literacy and Adult Education. This is an organization for adult education practitioners. Membership is voluntary.

TANF, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. A federal monthly cash assistance program for poor families with children under age 18. There is a four-year lifetime limit on cash assistance.

TCALL, Texas Center for the Advancement of Literacy and Learning. TCALL is housed at Texas A&M in College Station, Texas. It serves as a library of materials for adult educators, a professional development resource and it administers a number of Email discussion lists for Texas adult education and family literacy grantees. The TCALL web address is http://www-tcall.tamu.edu.

TEASE, Texas Education Agency Secure Environment. TEASE houses online applications such as eGrants, online reporting databases such as TESPIRS and TEAMS, and AEGIS. Users must have a TEASE password plus permission to access each application in TEASE.

TEA, Texas Education Agency. The state agency that oversees programming funded by state and federal sources in Texas.

TEAMS is the Texas Educating Adults Management System. It is a database that captures specific information about each adult education participant. TEAMS tracks contact hours and assessment data, and then calculates program performance on adult education indicators of performance quality. Students are issued a unique student number in TEAMS. TEAMS Secure website.

TEKS, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. Objectives and skills to be taught at each grade level PK-12 in all subject areas. Mastery is determined by a student’s performance on the TAKS, or Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills.

TESA, Texas Even Start Association. This is an organization for Even Start practitioners. Membership is voluntary.

TESPIRS, Texas Even Start Program Information Reporting System. This is an online statewide database for Texas Even Start programs. Even Start programs are required to report data quarterly through this system. Programs should request a user name and password for TESPIRS as soon as the program is funded. Applications are available at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/forms/tease/tespirs.htm

TETN, Texas Educational Teleconferencing Network. This is an interactive closed-circuit television system for conducting educator training in Texas. Training broadcasts generally originate from a studio in the Texas Education Agency and are broadcast to Education Service Centers and a few additional sites in Texas. Participants can communicate with presenters during the broadcast. Reservations to attend TETN broadcasts are made through the Education Service Centers.

TWC, Texas Workforce Commission. The state government agency charged with overseeing and providing workforce development services to employers and job seekers of Texas. TWC community offices may be titled Workforce Solutions.

USDOE, United States Department of Education. The source of federal funding for public education in the United States. The USDOE oversees both program administration and fiscal administration of federal funds.

WIA, Workforce Investment Act. Federal legislation which includes Adult Education and Family Literacy Act. It is the source of federal adult education and literacy funds.

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