California’s Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P) has quickly become one of the state’s most transformative education initiatives. Launched in 2021 under Assembly Bill 130, ELO-P commits billions of dollars each year to before- and after-school, intersession, and summer school enrichment programs for students in transitional kindergarten (TK) through grade 6.
Because ELO-P is allocated to all local education agencies (LEAs), these funds are supporting diverse school districts. This initiative not only enhances out-of-school-time services but also exemplifies expanded learning programs designed to bolster student success. Moreover, the funding mechanism supports expanded learning while ensuring that elo p funds are available for a range of needs. For districts, the california department provides guidelines that help maintain consistency and transparency.
This guide is for administrators who want to grasp not just how ELO-P funds are calculated, but also how to implement the program in a sustainable, transparent way. It will walk through the crux of ELO-P allocation, highlight spending timelines and compliance tasks, and offer practical suggestions for weaving ELO-P into a cohesive extended-learning strategy, including the integration of extended learning programs.
Funding Mechanics Beyond the Formula
The foundation of ELO-P financing is fairly straightforward: each LEA receives an annual apportionment tied primarily to Average Daily Attendance (ADA) and Unduplicated Pupils (UPP).
Average Daily Attendance (ADA) refers to the mean number of students who are present at school each day during a specific reporting period. It’s different from enrollment numbers because it only counts students who are actually present, not just those who are registered. And, UPP refers to students who qualify for one or more of the following categories: English learners, foster youth, or eligible for reduced price meals. Each student is counted only once, even if they qualify for multiple categories.
While LEAs with a UPP of 75% or higher secure a higher per-pupil funding rate, those below 75% receive a lower rate, still enough to bolster expanded learning access for their students. This “guaranteed” structure makes ELO-P unique from other programs like 21st CCLC, which require competitive applications.
Although the formula is fairly simple, it’s a little more complicated to decide how these funds should be distributed and reported over the school year and summer. ELO-P can cover a broad range of expenses such as staff salaries, curriculum resources, training, and transportation. But how you spend the funds must be rooted in your district’s ELO-P Plan, a publicly available document approved by the local governing board. School budgets must clearly outline how much funding is allocated to different initiatives. Alongside specifying budgets, this plan should outline program goals—such as improving English Learner support, offering STEAM-based summer camps, or maintaining consistent nine-hour coverage for TK–6 students.
Aligning Funds with Operational Demands
A defining trait of ELO-P is its requirement that students in TK–6 have the option of nine total hours of school-day plus expanded learning time, as well as 30 additional days of “full-day” programming when school is not in session. Although these demands apply most tightly to LEAs with higher UPP (which in turn receive more funds), even lower-UPP districts must craft an approach to after-school and intersession services, especially for their unduplicated pupils.
From a funding perspective, this translates into a need for upfront planning. For instance, staffing for nine-hour days often means hiring certified teachers and/or paraprofessionals, including instructional day teachers. This may also include hiring literacy coaches for additional classroom support. Similarly, summer or intersession programs might require additional facilities costs, transportation logistics, and youth development specialists who can run engaging, hands-on lessons that go beyond academic remediation. School business managers should develop an annual budget that projects not just routine expenditures but also potential expansions like adding a week of summer STEM camps or forging partnerships with local nonprofits.
Key Timelines and Expenditure Requirements
Unlike some competitive grants, ELO-P allocations recur each year, which theoretically simplifies planning. Yet the strings attached to these appropriations, particularly concerning spending windows and reporting, can complicate matters. Typically, funds allocated in one fiscal year must be spent by June 30 of the following or second-following year. If, for instance, you receive 2022–23 ELO-P dollars, there is a firm deadline for encumbering and expending those resources; any unspent portion might have to be returned or reported as carryover, depending on the state’s directives.
Furthermore, the California Department of Education (CDE) requires comprehensive expenditure reports. While your district’s finance department may be accustomed to such protocols for other programs, ELO-P’s size and scope demand precise categorization of costs. Expenditures typically fall under well-established line items—staff salaries, supplies, transportation, nutrition, and training—but must all tie directly to your board-approved plan. Given that ELO-P is partly designed to enhance learning rather than duplicate regular classroom instruction, certain items (capital improvements, for instance) may not be allowed. Maintaining organized records throughout this process is critical for audit readiness.
Effective Attendance Management and Reporting
It may appear odd that while ELO-P allocations derive from prior-year ADA, there is still emphasis on day-to-day attendance tracking for students who attend the extended-hours programs. The reason is twofold. First, auditors and the CDE want to see that ELO-P funds are benefiting students consistently, and not simply allocated without meaningful participation. Second, robust attendance data helps administrators assess whether the program is fully utilized, identify patterns in participation (such as underrepresentation among certain groups), and justify future expansions or adjustments. In fact, successful ELO-P programming often hinges on such data.
In practical terms, many LEAs adopt electronic sign-in systems for morning and after-school sessions, or they integrate ELO-P attendance into the same software used for ASES or 21st CCLC tracking. While ELO-P’s allocation does not rise or fall immediately based on daily attendance logs, having this data improves transparency and can inform subsequent year allocations if overall ADA moves. It also provides local leadership with direct insights into which sites or age groups are benefiting most from the extended school day.
Building a High-Quality ELO-P Program
Nine-hour days, including academic support and enrichment, demand well-coordinated scheduling and a staff that feels supported and well-trained. To that end, many districts channel a portion of their ELO-P budget toward:
- Professional DevelopmentFrom youth mental health first aid to culturally responsive pedagogy, these training sessions strengthen the quality of interactions between afterschool staff and students. High-stress jobs like extended-day supervision can suffer from high turnover; consistent and relevant PD fosters retention.
- Enrichment PartnershipsNonprofits, local parks and recreation departments, and specialized tutoring services can enrich your ELO-P offerings by providing arts, sports, and STEAM programs that classroom teachers may not have time or resources to deliver. Effectively working with community partners requires building in contractual line items, like stipends for teaching artists or coverage for materials, and maintaining clarity about each group’s responsibilities.
- Curriculum and MaterialsELO-P funds can purchase everything from robotics kits to musical instruments, as long as these directly link to out-of-school-time enrichment. Emphasizing hands on, project-based lessons can provide learning activities that keep students engaged.
Although ASES, 21st CCLC, and ELO-P share common features such as low staff-student ratios (often 20:1 for elementary grades) and a blend of academics plus enrichment, ELO-P’s requirement for a combined nine-hour day can be more stringent. It underscores the legislature’s intention to create a genuine “full-day” experience for young learners, one that might include both homework help and extracurricular clubs.
“Braiding” Funds for a Unified Program
In many districts, ELO-P does not stand alone. Rather, it supplements or complements existing after-school dollars from state and federal sources. By design, the state invites LEAs to “braid” multiple funding streams, ELO-P, ASES, 21st CCLC, into a single, cohesive extended-learning plan. This approach can significantly benefit students, but it also demands careful administrative coordination.
An LEA might, for instance, rely on ASES for its conventional 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. after-school coverage (including snacks and homework help). If ELO-P is then used to extend the morning schedule or add specialized summer programs, the district must meticulously ensure it does not double-count the same student hours for both grants. Time sheets, activity rosters, and attendance logs should accurately reflect which hours are covered by which program’s funds. While such diligence may appear tedious, it does help preserve program integrity and avoid audit findings.
Braiding can also enable administrators to target distinct populations. For example, if your LEA runs a 21st CCLC site specifically aimed at students from high-poverty schools, you can use ELO-P to expand beyond that core group to reach any TK–6 student whose parent requests participation. In this way, multiple grants broaden the net, ensuring all students have equitable access to extended learning.
Meeting Oversight and Compliance Obligations
While ELO-P is not a competitive grant, it still carries a host of compliance obligations. Chief among them is the board-approved ELO-P Plan, posted publicly, which outlines how the district will provide the nine-hour combined day, at least 30 days of intersession/summer programming, and an emphasis on unduplicated pupils. Regular updates to this plan, documenting any mid-year changes, expansions, or new community partnerships, keep the program legally sound and transparent for families. For additional guidance, consult the expanded learning division of the California Department of Education.
Administrators should also keep a close eye on annual audits. ELO-P expenditures are subject to review under the Guide for Annual Audits of K–12 Local Education Agencies and State Compliance Reporting. Auditors typically request receipts, evidence of board approval, attendance records, and payroll documentation. Noncompliance, whether intentional or accidental, could mean repaying misused funds or losing access to future allocations. Proactive measures, such as developing internal checklists and maintaining organized records, can avert last-minute scrambling.
The CDE’s official FAQ pages and bulletins are similarly worth monitoring. They clarify evolving guidelines, for instance, permissible uses of funds for technology or staff training, and provide windows into the state’s oversight priorities. Connecting with your county office of education and professional groups (e.g., the California AfterSchool Network) can also help you stay updated on policy shifts or new interpretations of ELO-P mandates.
Achieving The Vision
ELO-P is truly a unique opportunity for California’s elementary students, one that can genuinely reshape daily schedules, summer opportunities, and enrichment pathways. School administrators aiming to provide access to comprehensive extended learning experiences must craft a vision that integrates staff training, data-driven attendance strategies, and the braiding of funds from multiple sources. By focusing as much on quality as on coverage, districts can ensure that their extended learning initiatives truly elevate student experiences and outcomes, reaffirming their commitment to both education and community support.
Whether you’re refining ELO-P programming or considering the role of instructional day teachers, we hope this guide has been helpful for you to make the most of your ELO-P funding. With the right planning, budget management, and strategic collaboration with community partners, California school districts are able to level up the standard school day into a richer set of engaging learning experiences.
