Description
Engagement type: 1099 independent contractor
Location: Remote (United States)
Hours: Flexible — applicants are asked to state their available hours per week and project capacity
Project window: Now through June 9, 2026 (federal IAL application deadline); follow-on engagements possible for FY 2027 and other federal literacy competitions
Reports to: Just Right Reader Business Development team
About Just Right Reader: Just Right Reader is a national literacy organization founded by educator and school leader Sara Rich in 2019 to accelerate reading achievement. Just Right Reader has delivered more than 30 million books to 5+ million students across 3,000+ school districts and 250,000 families.
The Opportunity
The U.S. Department of Education’s Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) program (Assistance Listing 84.215G) supports literacy projects for children and students from birth through grade 12 in high-need local educational agencies. The FY 2026 competition offers an estimated $16.8 million across 25–35 awards (range $375,000–$750,000; average $500,000) over a 60-month project period. Applications are due June 9, 2026.
Just Right Reader is engaging a roster of independent K-12 grant consultants to help eligible LEAs across the country prepare strong, compliant FY 2026 IAL applications anchored to Just Right Reader’s Science of Reading-aligned program. Consultants will work directly with applicant LEAs, with day-to-day support from Just Right Reader’s Business Development and full access to Just Right Reader’s IAL Application Toolkit (one-page overview, narrative template, endorsement letter templates, and post-award one-pager).
Requirements
Scope of Work
- Consult with district staff. Attend initial and follow-up meetings as necessary during LEA working hours.
- LEA intake and IAL eligibility review. Confirm SAIPE 20% poverty threshold; pull NCES locale codes for Competitive Preference Priority 1; document eligibility for the application’s Other Attachments.
- Project narrative drafting and editing.
- Develop the LEA’s 25-page Project Narrative against the 100-point selection criteria (Need for the Project; Quality of
- Project Design; Quality of Management Plan) and both Absolute Priorities.
- Logic model and performance measure design. Build the project logic model and translate the four IAL Performance Measures into measurable LEA-specific baselines and targets.
- Endorsement letter coordination. Personalize the Governor and chief State education official endorsement letter templates and coordinate the LEA’s outreach and signature track for Absolute Priority 2.
- Budget and budget narrative development. Build Years 1–5 itemized budgets.
- Intergovernmental review and submission. Coordinate Executive Order 12372 routing through the State Single Point of Contact.
Requirements
- Three or more years of experience writing successful federal K-12 education grant applications, including at least one U.S. Department of Education discretionary grant award.
- Working knowledge of the Education Department General Administrative Regulations (34 CFR Part 75), 2 CFR Part 200 (Uniform Guidance), and applicable EDGAR sections (75.110, 75.210, 75.232, 75.253, 75.591).
- Demonstrated ability to translate the ESSA evidence definitions in 34 CFR 77.1 (strong / moderate / promising / demonstrates a rationale) into compliant narrative language.
- Hands-on experience with Grants.gov Workspace and SAM.gov registration workflows.
- Strong, clear, evidence-anchored writing in a professional, applicant-facing voice.
- Project management discipline — the ability to manage multiple LEA timelines concurrently and to meet immovable federal deadlines.
- Bachelor’s degree in education, public administration, or a related field.
