Geo-Regional Experts for Multilingual Students Grant Program

Purpose: 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 English Learner and long-term English learner (LTEL) students, as specified in California Education Code (EC) Section 52073.4 . 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 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). 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 the size of the program. 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 . Eligible Applicants: To be eligible for selection, county offices of education must commit to assigning a dedicated, .7 FTE staff member with subject matter expertise to the GEMS role for the duration of the grant. Eligible Geographies: The CDE will ultimately select the grantees in a manner that ensures statewide coverage, including considering diversity across rural and urban settings. The CDE may reject any application that does not meet technical standards, lacks responsiveness, or is otherwise deemed ineligible.

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  gems@cde.ca.gov