Geo-Regional Experts for Multilingual Students

Geo-Regional Experts for Multilingual Students Grant Program

The 2025–26 Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve Education Omnibus Trailer Bill, Assembly Bill 121 (Chapter 52, Statutes of 2025) Section 50 provides $2 million annually, beginning in the 2026–27 fiscal year, to support between five and seven competitive regional English learner (EL) lead agencies. Selected county offices of education (COEs) will be recognized in California’s Statewide System of Support under the title of Geo-Regional Experts for Multilingual Students (GEMS). The purpose of this program is to strengthen California’s Statewide System of Support by ensuring that local educational agencies (LEAs) receive coordinated technical assistance, resources, and professional development to improve English language development (ELD) instruction and outcomes for EL and long-term English learner (LTEL) students, as specified in California Education Code (EC) Section 52073.4.

The GEMS will perform the following duties:

• Build the capacity of COEs to provide technical assistance to support the development, implementation, and evaluation of effective EL instructional programs;
• Coordinate and calibrate within and across the System of Support to tailor assistance and support to LEAs;
• Provide support around high-quality ELD instruction statewide;
• Identify and disseminate information about existing regional resources, professional development, and efforts that support effective English language acquisition programs;
• Support the meaningful integration of the California English Learner Roadmap Policy (EL Roadmap) within the Statewide System of Support;
• Develop new resources and capacity-building activities for LEAs to improve outcomes for EL students, including LTEL students;
• Participate in the Statewide Literacy Network; and
• Fulfill other responsibilities as specified by the California Department of Education (CDE).

Per EC Section 52073.4 , the CDE shall select COEs, in consultation with and subject to approval by the executive director of the State Board of Education (SBE), to serve as GEMS agencies to conduct the required activities above. To be considered, applicants should have the following required qualifications and capacities:

• Expertise in EL Roadmap: possess appropriate expertise in the California EL Roadmap SBE Policy: Educational Programs and Services for English Learners, adopted July 12, 2017;
• Capacity Building for COEs: demonstrated ability to build the capacity of COEs within a defined region to support school districts and charter schools in delivering high-quality, comprehensive ELD instruction;
• Technical Assistance and Resource Provision: proven capacity to provide technical assistance and resources that support the development, implementation, and evaluation of effective EL instructional programs for school districts and charter schools;
• Support to COEs: capacity and willingness to provide necessary assistance and support to other COEs;
• Coordination and Calibration Across Agencies: ability to coordinate and calibrate assistance to LEAs within a defined region, and in collaboration with other GEMS, Literacy Lead Agencies, and the CDE; and
• Accountability and Performance Monitoring: demonstrate willingness and ability to: define clear outcome measures and implement high-leverage strategies, track and monitor progress toward goals, take accountability for achieving measurable improvements across multiple indicators within the designated region.

The CDE, in consultation with the SBE, will design and oversee the administration of this grant program, including establishing grant award criteria, creating the application process, collecting data from participating COEs, and distributing grant funds.

Under this program, selected COEs will receive a minimum of $250,000 to strengthen capacity within their designated regions. Additional funds may be available depending on the needs of the region and size of the program.

Grant funds will be used to:

• Coordinate and align technical assistance with designated lead agencies, the CDE, and LEAs, utilizing California School Dashboard indicators for EL and LTEL students
• Identify and share existing resources
• Develop new resources when requested
• Implement the EL Roadmap throughout the System of Support
• Participate in Statewide Literacy Network activities aligned with adopted frameworks
• Fulfill other duties as specified by the CDE

Allowable expenditures may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Costs to support the salary and benefits of the certificated EL lead grant staff person
• Costs to support the travel and participation of grantee staff, partners, and educators in design, development, and implementation meetings to facilitate or participate in GEMS activities
• Costs to provide or produce quality materials for coaching and professional learning activities

This program is under development, and additional information will be posted as it becomes available.

Request for Application Web Page and Timeline

To learn more about the Request for Application (RFA), including the timeline and application workshop webinar, please refer to the CDE GEMS RFA web page.