Mini-Corps General Guidelines 2026–27

The California Department of Education (CDE), Migrant Education Office, is pleased to announce the California Mini-Corps (CMC) grant application for fiscal year 2026–27.

The purpose of the application is to obtain a comprehensive description of proposed supplementary Migrant Education Program (MEP) services. The following general guidelines are provided to inform and guide the development and completion of the CMC grant application for 2026–27.

General Guidelines

• For the 2026–27 fiscal year, the funding period will be from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027. Summer Services for July and August 2026 will be budgeted in the 2026–27 application.
• Grant funds will not be awarded until an application is substantially approvable (Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] Section 76.708 ). Subgrantees that delay submission of grant applications will not receive reimbursement for salaries and activities that occur during the period in which an application is outstanding in the new fiscal year.
• The CMC grant application must include the operation of at least 20 program sites throughout the state at Institutions of Higher Education (IHE).
• The applicant must provide an indoor tutoring program, with a minimum of 14 tutors for each program site, assigning a minimum of five students per tutor.
• During the summer term, the applicant should operate an Outdoor Education (OE) program and a summer indoor institute.
• During the summer term, the applicant should operate a puppetry program.
• During the regular school year and summer term, tutors will receive six hours of professional development training throughout the course of each month. Topics must include the CMC Literacy Handbook and preparation for the following examinations: California Subject Examinations for Teachers, California Basic Educational Skills Test, or equivalent teacher-credentialing requirements.
• The applicant must utilize the CMC Literacy Handbook in all program services, where applicable.
• The applicant should enter pertinent Migrant Pupil Service Information in the CMC attendance database for each of the students that are served by CMC tutors.
• The MEP is primarily governed by fiscal policies in Title 2,CFR,Section 200 , the Fiscal Handbook, and Allowable Cost Guidebook. All applicants must abide by the policies, laws, and guidance.
• For program planning involving transitional kindergarten (TK) students, TK is considered early education and for the purposes of instruction, is guided by California Preschool/Transitional Kindergarten Learning Foundations (PTKLF).
• Program planning should provide the most inclusive instructional environment possible for migratory students with disabilities and provide support per local educational agency policies. MEP should check with their Special Education Local Plan Area for further guidance.
• The CMC will strive to hire bilingual (Spanish) college students (preferably formerly migratory students) as tutors and provide training and support to those students who are strongly interested in pursuing a teaching career.
• The applicant should provide the following documents to CDE:
  • Pre and post assessments for OE students must be administered and summarized for each OE event.
  • Evaluation of the Puppetry Program for each puppetry event.
  • Survey results conducted by teachers and students for the Indoor Tutoring Program.
  • Memorandums of Understanding and contracts at CDE’s request.
  • Any data requested by the Legislature pursuant to statutory requirements by the deadlines established in statue and report at CDE’s request.
  • Annual College Coordinator Reports for each of the CMC IHE sites based on the information from the prior academic year. Each report must include the following elements:
    • Introduction
    • Program Services for the CMC Program Sites
      Teacher and Student Survey Results
    • Tutor Output:
      • Number of tutors who graduate with an associate and a bachelor’s degree.
      • Number of tutors who graduate with a bachelor's degree and who applied to a teacher credential program and the number that enrolled. Provide the name of the teacher’s credential program, if available. Provide type of credential they will pursue and if they plan to pursue bilingual authorization.
    • Program Highlights
    • Concluding Remarks
  • Independent and objective annual report, based on the data from the prior year. The annual report must provide overall unduplicated student and tutor counts, assessment outcomes, and evaluation of the following CMC instructional services:
    • Indoor Tutoring
    • Summer Outdoor Education
    • Puppetry Program
    • Increasing the Bilingual Teacher Pipeline