Please use this site as a guide for spending the English Learner Equity Amount of Title I funds—commonly referred to as Title I META Funds—at your school in a way that meets compliance requirements.

The site also provides examples of supplemental instructional materials designed to support Multilingual Learners in meeting grade-level state standards while addressing their language development needs.

Title I EL Equity Requirements Under the META Consent Decree

Considerations for Title I EL Equity Requirements under the META Consent Decree

The META Consent Decree requires schools to determine the services most needed by Multilingual Learners (MLs) before spending Title I funds. All services must be supplemental, tailored to the specific needs of MLs, and solely benefit MLs. Compliance must be clearly reflected in each school’s budget, and OMME is obligated to review, monitor, and request revisions where necessary to ensure alignment with federal,state, local laws, BPS guidelines and the consent decree.

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   Supplement, Not Supplant

   Title I META funds must be used in addition to(supplement), not in place of, services already required under state, local or federal law. Funds may not replace core services or duplicate purchases made with other public funds.

   • Exception: Certain expenses associated with the HILT for SLIFE program may be funded with Title I META funds.

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   Services Tailored to ML Needs

   Services must address the linguistic, cultural, socio-emotional, and academic needs of MLs. These needs should be identified as part of the needs assessment process required by the consent decree.

   • Staffing positions must provide supplemental services and focus on MLs with English language development (ELD) levels 1 and 2, as they are the most vulnerable group of students requiring support.
      
   • Non-personnel expenditures (e.g., instructional materials, technology, or supplemental programs) must also be clearly tied to addressing MLs’ unique needs and justified as going above and beyond what is provided to all students.

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   Sole Benefit to MLs

   Title I META expenditures must exclusively serve MLs.This means that any funded positions or services must be dedicated to MLs during the point of performance..

   • Non-personnel expenditures (e.g., materials, software, family engagement events) must be designed and implemented in a way that benefits MLs only, not the broader student body.
      
   • Positions or resources that simultaneously serve MLs and non-MLs are not allowable toward the equity amount.

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   EL Equity Requirement

   Each school’s Title I resources must benefit MLs proportionately to their representation in the school population.

   • Example: If a school receives $100,000 in Title I funding and 25% of the student body are MLs, then $25,000 must be spent on supplemental services directly and solely for MLs, this is the school’s Title I META Allocation. This “equity amount” is calculated centrally during the Budget Collab/Probable Org process.

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   Monitoring & Accountability

   • Needs Assessment: Conducted annually to determine ML supports, which drives Title I META spending.
      
   • Budget Plan: School leaders submit plans showing how funds supplement instruction for MLs; OMME provides feedback to ensure compliance.
      
   • Checklist: Schools also complete the META Budget Monitoring Checklist, verifying how funds were spent. This is submitted to META attorneys annually.

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   Legal Obligation

   • OMME provides feedback to school leaders to ensure that planned spending aligns with the requirements of the META Consent Decree. 
   • During the fiscal year OMME monitors expenditures. By the end of the fiscal year, creates the Title I for ELs Budget Monitoring Checklist, which documents how funds were actually spent and verifies compliance with the decree. This Checklist is submitted annually to the META attorneys for review. Each school’s budget must clearly demonstrate an intention to comply.
   •  OMME is responsible for working with schools to revise any budgets that do not meet requirements—such as prohibiting supplanting of core funding or ensuring that EL instructors, including HILT teachers, are properly funded and coded.

Note: Supplemental requirements ensure services provided with Federal funds are in addition to and do not replace or supplant services that students would otherwise receive in the absence of these funds. (ESEA Sec1120A)