Title I, Part A
Support for schools serving students from low-income families.
View funding source ↗Michigan · Schools & districts
High-impact tutoring for Michigan schools.
Live, small-group virtual tutoring in K–12 math and ELA. Connect Michigan’s literacy, MTSS, and student-support priorities with focused instruction and evidence of how students are thinking.
A closer look at Michigan
Your state’s priorities.
Your students’ next steps.
What Michigan is prioritizing
State priorities.
Focused support.
Earlier reading support. Instruction connected through MTSS. A focus on the math, literacy, and participation milestones that matter for your students.
Official sources checked November 9, 2026
01Literacy. Prepare for a stronger, earlier response.
Michigan’s emphasis
Michigan is preparing for full implementation of its K–12 Literacy and Dyslexia Law in 2027–28. Current guidance emphasizes screening, progress monitoring, evidence-based instruction, and communication with families. The work extends beyond the early grades to older students showing reading difficulties.
The Cignition connection
Start with the specific reading skills your school team has identified. Review proposed tutoring tasks and how they connect with classroom instruction. Keep school screening, required plans, and family communication with the team responsible for them.
02MTSS. Connect extra instruction with the school’s plan.
Michigan’s emphasis
Michigan’s Section 31a framework connects support for eligible students with a K–12 Multi-Tiered System of Supports. The emphasis is a planned response to academic and non-academic needs, supported by evidence about how students are doing.
The Cignition connection
Agree on the instructional need, the students served, and the information tutors will share. Use student explanations, mastery checks, attendance, and school evidence to inform the next instructional decision. Tutoring should connect with the framework already in place.
03Math and participation. Build a path to the next milestone.
Michigan’s emphasis
Section 31a identifies regular attendance, third-grade reading, eighth-grade mathematics, and readiness for college or a career as student outcomes. For a tutoring plan, participation and instructional progress both deserve attention.
The Cignition connection
Protect recurring tutoring time and plan the practical details that help students join: devices, a suitable space, onsite support, and a clear school contact. Connect grade-level math goals with prerequisite support and opportunities to explain reasoning.
Our curriculum. Your instructional goals.
From a learning target
to student thinking.
Start with the skill your students need next. Connect the learning goal, the task, and the explanation that shows how a student is thinking.
The Michigan connection · A closer look at instruction
From a learning need to the work students do.
Michigan’s emphasis on literacy and dyslexia preparation, MTSS, and participation provides context for reviewing this sample. Examine how a learner connects sounds and print, responds to prompts, and practices a foundational reading skill.
Compare the task and prerequisites with your classroom sequence and student work.
Explore a sample lesson
Elementary literacy
ELA · K–5 sample. Open the student lesson to examine the tasks for yourself.
Open the elementary literacy sample ↗
What should we look for?
Consider how a learner connects sounds and print, responds to prompts, and practices a foundational reading skill. Which responses would help your team decide what the student understands and what to teach next?
How would this connect with our curriculum?
Compare the learning goal, task, language, and prerequisites with your classroom materials. Your school’s learning sequence and the students’ starting points guide that discussion.
How should we use this example?
This grade-band sample illustrates selected instruction. It has not been customized for Michigan and is not a comprehensive state standards alignment. For a specific alignment question, share the standard and classroom materials with our team.
Inside a school partnership
A shared plan.
People to keep
it moving.
Cignition brings live virtual instruction, purpose-built lessons, a dedicated program manager, and participation and learning information. For example, a Michigan school could connect targeted reading instruction with its MTSS team and an agreed process for reviewing participation. Your school provides protected time, technology, and local support. This is a planning illustration; service eligibility and the agreed scope shape any partnership.
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Turn the instructional need into a workable plan.
Your school team
Identify the students and reading or math goals, share classroom and screening information, and protect recurring time. Your team names an onsite contact and checks devices, connectivity, and the proposed use of school funds.
The Cignition team
Your program manager coordinates planning with your school. Cignition prepares tutor assignments, small groups, instructional materials, and launch arrangements around your Michigan school’s literacy and dyslexia preparation, MTSS, and participation.
Keep the session focused and students connected.
Your school team
Help students join on time, maintain a supervised learning space, and support participation or connection issues. Classroom teachers continue core instruction; tutoring provides additional targeted learning time.
The Cignition team
Experienced, carefully vetted tutors lead live virtual instruction using Cignition’s purpose-built curriculum, questions, models, and discussion. They respond to student work and record attendance, participation, and learning information.
Use the information. Keep the conversation going.
Your school team
Share classroom observations and school assessment context, review participation with your onsite contact, and identify questions about student learning or the routine.
The Cignition team
Your program manager shares participation and learning information and coordinates follow-up. Cignition’s instructional and implementation teams use that information with your school to consider grouping, learning targets, or scheduling adjustments.
Michigan funding landscape
Understand the investment.
Find a relevant pathway.
Michigan’s Section 35p program creates a dedicated high-impact tutoring pathway. Cignition is on MDE’s eligible partner list. Review the grant’s current application status and virtual waiver requirements alongside Title I-A, Section 31a, and existing after-school awards.
Selected federal funding for Michigan
FY 2026 · Published statewide awards
Title II, Part A
Educator effectiveness and instructional capacity.
View funding source ↗Title III, Part A
English-language acquisition and support for English learners.
View funding source ↗21st Century Community Learning Centers
Academic enrichment during non-school hours.
View funding source ↗Read the MICHIGAN row and Fiscal Year 2026 column in each federal award table. These are statewide allocations, not unspent local funds or a dedicated tutoring budget. Title II generally supports educator capacity. Confirm your district’s allocation, allowable use, and available balance before planning an expense.
Michigan funding pathways
Funding reviewed November 10, 2026Dedicated tutoring funding.
An eligible partner to plan with.
FY 2026–27 · Section 35p(2) competitive grants · Applications open November 10–30, 2026
A Michigan tutoring investment
Section 35p provides $50 million statewide, including $44.4 million for competitive high-impact tutoring grants. An eligible tutoring partner prepares the proposal with participating districts and a district or ISD fiscal agent. Cignition appears on MDE’s eligible tutoring partners list through its Tutoring Program Design Badge.
What virtual delivery requires
The default model is in person, with no more than four students per tutor and at least two sessions weekly. Virtual delivery requires MDE’s Section 35p(5) waiver, evidence of impact for the proposed program, and an outcomes-based contract. A partner listing is not a grant award or virtual-program waiver.
Practical next step: Work with Cignition and a district or ISD fiscal agent on the narrative, district support letters, instructional plan, evidence, and budget. Complete the Formsite narrative and upload it with the application in NexSys. Submit by 5 p.m. Eastern on November 30, 2026, and confirm MDE’s current directions and virtual-waiver requirements.
Review Michigan’s Section 35p guidance ↗Additional instruction.
Start with the school’s plan.
Ongoing federal formula funding · Approved local use required
WHO / WHAT IT SUPPORTS
Michigan schools operate Title I schoolwide or targeted assistance programs. The model matters: it determines how additional instruction fits the school plan and which students can be served.
WHERE TUTORING COULD FIT
Review targeted math or literacy instruction against the school’s identified needs and program model. The district’s federal programs team should confirm the proposed activity, eligible students, and documentation.
Practical next step: Check the current allocation, required reservations, available balance, local plan, and purchasing process before committing funds.
Review Michigan’s Title I planning guidance ↗Support for eligible students.
Build on an existing allocation.
State categorical funding · District eligibility and allowable use apply
Who / what it supports
Section 31a provides at-risk funding to eligible districts and public school academies. Its purposes include reading, mathematics, participation, and readiness, with services connected to the district’s MTSS framework.
Where tutoring could fit
A district can review additional instructional services for eligible students as part of its documented support plan. Confirm the current year’s rules and the proposed virtual service with the district’s Section 31a lead.
Practical next step: Use the current allocation and student-eligibility documentation. Check allowable costs, any required set-asides, reporting, and local procurement. A district allocation is not a vendor approval.
Review Michigan’s Section 31a guidance ↗Learning beyond the bell.
Work with a current grantee.
Existing awards only · Approved program, period, and budget required
Who / what it supports
Michigan’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers support academic enrichment during out-of-school hours, particularly for students attending high-poverty and low-performing schools. Programs also provide enrichment and family services.
Where tutoring could fit
An awarded program can review math or literacy tutoring as one academic component of its approved activities. Connect it with school-day learning and retain the broader enrichment and family-engagement work.
Practical next step: Have the grantee confirm a current award, eligible students and sites, approved hours, budget, supervision, and permission for a virtual tutoring component. This is not an open grant application.
Explore Michigan’s 21st CCLC program ↗A separate parent-driven tutoring pilot
Section 35p(10) provides $5 million for a Parent-Driven Tutoring Pilot. Participating districts create a list of eligible tutoring partners, families select a provider, and the district pays the provider directly. This is a separate pathway from the Section 35p(2) competitive grants described above.
MDE lists the November 10–30, 2026 NexSys application period for Section 35p. The pilot requires a separate Formsite narrative; MDE marked that narrative link “coming soon” when checked November 12. Confirm the current pilot instructions, provider eligibility, and availability of the narrative with MDE before planning an application.
Existing Section 23g funds
Districts with a remaining MI Kids Back on Track award should also review Section 23g. Tutoring must fit the approved plan, budget, and reporting requirements. This is a route for existing recipients, not a new grant round. MDE requires contracts and services to be completed by October 30, 2027; unspent funds must be returned. Verify the district’s remaining balance and approved use before planning services.
Verify Cignition in MDE’s eligible tutoring partners spreadsheet ↗. Review the Section 35p FAQ ↗ for the application process and virtual waiver.
Michigan · Program fit & purchasing
Start with fit.
Plan the details.
Planning around Section 35p? Cignition is listed as an eligible tutoring partner. For our live virtual model, the application must include the required waiver and an outcomes-based contract. Coordinate the district or ISD fiscal agent, support letters, evidence, and implementation plan before committing funds. Eligibility does not guarantee funding.
Connect the proposed lessons and progress review with classroom instruction and Michigan’s reading requirements.
Confirm student eligibility, allowable activities, the spending period, local purchasing, and provider requirements with your district. Include onsite supervision and student-data protections in the service plan.
A few useful questions
What would you like to work through?
Start here, then bring the questions specific to your students and school.
How would tutoring connect with Michigan’s literacy work?
Begin with the reading needs your team has identified and the instruction already in use. Review the proposed tasks, tutor preparation, and progress communication together. Tutoring can provide additional instruction, while the school remains responsible for screening, required reading plans, and family communication.
Can tutoring fit within our MTSS framework?
Review it as a specific instructional support within your school’s plan. Define the students, the skill focus, recurring time, progress evidence, and who will make decisions about changes. Your school team determines how the proposed service fits its MTSS framework and any applicable requirements.
Could Section 31a funds support a program?
Potentially, when the students and instructional services meet the current requirements and the district approves the expense. Ask your Section 31a and finance leads to review eligibility, the MTSS connection, allowable costs, reporting, and purchasing before making a commitment.
How do you connect with the curriculum we use?
Share your learning sequence, classroom materials, and student work. We can review proposed Cignition lessons, prerequisite support, and the information your team wants to see. The existing grade-band samples show the tutoring approach. They do not establish comprehensive coverage of Michigan’s standards.
Could our after-school grant support tutoring?
A current 21st CCLC grantee can review tutoring as an academic component of its approved program. Confirm the award period, students, sites, schedule, budget, supervision, and virtual-service arrangements. The grant’s broader enrichment and family requirements still apply.
What if I’m looking for help for my own child?
This page focuses on school and district partnerships. For tutoring arranged directly by a family, explore Cignition’s family plans and discuss your child’s learning goals, grade level, and scheduling needs.
Is Cignition eligible for Michigan’s Section 35p tutoring program?
Cignition appears on MDE’s eligible tutoring partners list through its Tutoring Program Design Badge. Section 35p(2) uses competitive applications with a district or ISD fiscal agent. Our virtual delivery model requires an MDE waiver, evidence of program impact, and an outcomes-based contract. The listing does not guarantee a grant or waiver. Applications are open November 10–30, 2026, and are due by 5 p.m. Eastern on November 30. Work with the district or ISD fiscal agent on both the NexSys application and required narrative submission.
Section 35p(10) is a separate $5 million Parent-Driven Tutoring Pilot. Participating districts create a list of eligible partners, families select a provider, and the district pays the provider directly. MDE marked the pilot’s separate narrative link “coming soon” when checked November 12. Review the current pilot instructions and provider requirements with MDE before including a provider in an application.
Your school’s next step
Let’s plan around
your students.
Planning around literacy and dyslexia preparation, MTSS, and participation? Request curriculum examples, implementation details, evidence, or funding information for your Michigan school before deciding whether to book a call.
On our contact page, choose “Another question” for an information request or “School or district tutoring” to explore a program.