Alabama State Department of Education and A+ College Ready Program Grant Opportunity 2027-2028

Application Deadline October 1, 2026

A+ College Ready, in partnership with the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE), is issuing a competitive Grant Opportunity for participation in the ALSDE/A+ College Ready Program. A+ College Ready, on behalf of the ALSDE, partners with Alabama’s public schools to increase the number of students who:

• Are enrolled in challenging courses in rigorous coursework in Grades 6-12, including Advanced Placement courses.
• Are taught by well-trained teachers with strategic resources.
• Are meeting or exceeding annual academic growth metrics.
• Are prepared to access college, career, or other postsecondary opportunities with no need for remediation following high school graduation.
• Are attending, persisting, and graduating from college.

A program of the A+ Education Partnership, A+ College Ready is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization that works with Alabama schools, the ALSDE, and public and private sector funders to maximize the number of students who are prepared for college upon graduation from high school.  A+ College Ready accomplishes its goals by centering students to ensure that their needs guide our actions, expecting excellence of ourselves, our students, our schools, and prioritizing equity so every student can succeed.

The original goal of the program was to strengthen the teaching of Advanced Placement (AP) mathematics, science, and English courses, to build enrollment in these courses, and to increase the number of students taking and earning qualifying scores on AP exams in Alabama public schools. However, the work now concentrates equally on the preparation of a robust and diverse pipeline of students beginning in middle school who will be prepared for the rigorous coursework in high school, including AP courses. The program has expanded to now include Social Studies, Computer Science, AP Art, AP Spanish, and two new College Board Career Kickstart courses for Cybersecurity, and Business with Personal Finance.

The A+ College Ready training and incentive program is designed to support the implementation of Alabama’s Courses of Study in all four core disciplines (math, science, English, and social studies) as well as the Digital Literacy and Computer Science (DLCS) Standards in Grades K-12. To further that goal, A+ College Ready has expanded its original focus on preparing students for the challenges of college and career to include training and support for the implementation of teacher-developed A+ College Ready curricula in Grades 6-12.  A+ College Ready program schools must offer the computer science courses as required by legislation. The expectation is that program schools offer A+ College Ready supported computer science courses.

Non AP Supported Courses:

AP Supported Courses:

*Option for offering the two courses in an integrated delivery format.

District/School Responsibilities

Participation in the ALSDE/A+ College Ready program will require some investment and policy considerations on the part of participating schools/districts. Some of those investments and considerations include:

• Scheduling options that maximize opportunities for year-round AP courses and minimize teacher workloads/class sizes.
• Promoting appropriate course pathways that maximize student opportunities to participate in rigorous coursework including AP mathematics, science, English, social studies, computer science, Art and Spanish.
• Providing necessary facilities, textbooks, transportation, and resources for full access and participation in all program components.
• Providing leadership at the local level with the expectation that 100% of teachers of core courses in Grades 6-12 will attend three years of A+ College Ready E3 and/or AP summer training and implement the lessons/strategies/ assessments associated with the training.
• Providing support, including travel costs, that allow teachers in Grades 6-12 to attend all A+ College Ready training events to further their professional learning (including summer training, fall workshops/conference, AP mock exams readings, etc.).
• Planning, leading, and reporting school-wide collaborative team meetings and instructional rounds based on The New Art and Science of Teaching.
• Providing academic incentives for students taking AP courses (e.g., extra quality points, exemption from spring semester exams for AP students taking the national exam).
• Sharing enrollment data, standardized test data, and other pertinent information with A+ College Ready staff for program analysis and progress monitoring.
• Coordinating with Chief School Financial Officer (CSFO) for distribution of personnel stipends through district payroll.
• Working with local community stakeholders, including parents and caregivers, to support high expectations through rigorous coursework to improve student growth and achievement and to ultimately increase student opportunities for postsecondary education.

Following the submission of the Grant Opportunity Application, applicants can expect the following:

• A+ College Ready will review all submitted applications.
• An introductory virtual meeting will be set up by A+ College Ready to discuss the application, the selection process, and the program components in more detail.
• Based on the introductory meeting, A+ College Ready will schedule a school site visit to meet with the school administrators and leadership teams.  
• Schools will be notified of the outcome of the selection process mid-December 2026.
• Selected schools will be asked to accept the invitation to participate in the next cohort by January 15th, 2027.
• Selected schools will attend a Leadership Launch Orientation in February 2027.

The number of invitations to schools to participate in the program will be contingent on the availability of funds.

This Grant Opportunity Application includes:

• Applicant Signatures
• Applicant Information
• Statement of Interest (to be completed by any designated party)
• Submission Information

Middle School Demographics

Complete if full feeder patterns is applying OR if applicant is a middle school/junior high school

Your completed submission will automatically be sent to:

Mrs. Dieatra Howie (dieatra@aplusala.org)
Vice-President, A+ College Ready

Dr. Michal Robinson (mrobinson@alsde.edu)
Instructional Services Section, Alabama State Department of Education

Please contact Mrs. Dieatra Howie with any questions: dieatra@aplusala.org, (334) 372-2451.