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Religious and Independent School Support

Religious and Independent School Support

AIS Frequently Asked Questions

​What is the submission deadline for Y7?

​The claim, along with the supporting documents, must be submitted by October 17, 2024.   

​What does Y7 mean? 

​Y7 is the grant year indicator. AIS is in its 7th annual cycle since its introduction in 2015. 

​This grant is listed as reimbursable. What does that mean? 

​The AIS grant is reimbursable.  Schools incur expenses throughout the year to address academic intervention needs.  Eligible expenses (with appropriate documentation) can then be submitted for review and reimbursement.  

​I submitted my claim. How long is the review process?

​As it depends on several factors, including the number of applications, the quality of the applications, office staffing, etc., we are unable to give an accurate timeline for the review process.  If after initial review, NYSED has additional questions or identifies a need for more information or clarification, NYSED may issue a Request for Information (RFI). Applicants are typically given 30 days to provide the additional information or clarification requested in the RFI. NYSED reserves the right to issue as many separate RFI’s as are needed for NYSED to come to a determination about the application. Additionally, NYSED may elect to conduct an on-site review at the applicant’s proposed location. 

​If there is no set review time, how will I know when my school will be reimbursed?

​Following the review, your school would receive an autogenerated message of approval followed by auto-generated messages indicating the reimbursement and when it will be made (generally 7-10 business days from approval.)   

​A claim submission is not a guaranteed reimbursement, institutions should not operate in a financial deficit awaiting AIS reimbursement.  Please note, that the reimbursement process can take up to a year.  NYSED encourages schools to plan accordingly and be fiscally responsible.   

​Did we miss an opportunity for past years' allocations (Years 1-6)?  Or does the grant funding “accumulate” and roll forward?

​With AIS, there are no missed opportunities.   Unless the school has closed, the allocations accumulate from year to year.  Any unused allocations roll over into the next grant cycle. 

​The amounts approved for Y6 do not match the amounts we submitted. I would like to include the invoices that were not approved during AIS Y6 in our AIS Y7 submission.

​If a partial payment was approved, it means that certain claims were deemed ineligible. Please do not resend the invoice for a second review. 

​Schools are required to show proof of payment (i.e., canceled checks or credit card statements). However, because of storage concerns with the NYC schools, do they need to receive the shipment of resources prior to being reimbursed and do they need to show proof of receiving the resources?​

Yes, proof of receipt would be required in the form of detailed invoices or invoices with supplemental descriptions of the expenditures. The invoices must show that delivery or services were provided to the school address/location that is listed in the NYSED SEDREF system. 

I came across the attached old SORIS Code guidance indicating that funds allocated to schools with the same SORIS code can cover each other’s expense. Please confirm that this guidance is valid for AIS Y7 and that this applies to our schools that have multiple locations under the same ORISS code.

Pooled funding is permissible for affiliated schools that share Payee Information (Payee name and OSC Vendor ID). To clearly communicate the institution’s pooling intent during the submission process, each eligible school must file a separate application and upload a Pooling Form.  Please see the AIS Y7 Pooling resource for additional information and requirements. 

There is one invoice that covers all school locations for an eligible professional development activity. Is it ok to use the funds from one school location only to cover these types of expenses?  

Yes, pooled funding can be used to cover collective expenses.  AIS Y7 Pooling resource for additional information and requirements.  

What is the purchase window/deadline for eligible expenses?

The purchase window for the Y7 cycle ends on June 30, 2024.    

Was there any flexibility in reporting of assessments during the pandemic?

Yes.

As the grade 3-8 NYS Assessments in English Language Arts and Mathematics were not administered in 2020-2021 school year, the Y6 AIS Allocations utilized the 2019-2020 BEDS data (replicated the data from AIS Y5).  While these assessments were administered in 2021-2022 school year, the educational landscape was still in a state of transition, so NYSED provided an additional year of assessment reporting flexibility as it relates to AIS calculations. More specifically:

  • If a school did not submit assessment data in Y7 but did in Y5, the institution's Y7 assessment figures were retained for Y7
  • If a school submitted assessment data in Y7 but the number of AIS-qualifying students was less than or equal to the number of AIS-qualifying students in Y5, the institution's Y5 assessment figures were retained for Y7.
Our schools Year 7 AIS Allocation seems low. Other years, we have received much more based on the standardized ELA and Math tests administered annually for Grades 3-8. Please advise.

The annual AIS allocation methodology in Y7 is based in the 2021-2022 school year assessment reporting. The 2021-2022 school year was greatly affected by the COVID-pandemic; therefore, some flexibility was permitted for AIS Grant reporting. Reporting flexibility, coupled with post-pandemic student performance (in this case, low performance), resulted in a 50% increase in the AIS Student Total (statewide). As the AIS grant appropriation remained the same for Y7, for some institutions, the higher NYS AIS Student Total resulted in a decrease of Y7 AIS Allocation funding.  In other words, the same pot of funds needed to feed more mouths. For additional information on Y7 Allocations & Calculations, please visit the AIS Guidance & Resource Documents website and open the Y7 AIS Guidance document.

Reminder – AIS application forms and all accompanying required documents must be received by NYSED no later than October 17, 2024.