What is a TSL Grant?

The Teacher and School Leader (TSL) Incentive Program, formerly known as the Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF), is a three-year education grant program funded by the US Department of Education designed to award teachers, principals and other school leaders serving in high-need schools who raise student academic achievement and seek to close the gap between higher and lower performing students.

Purpose of Program

TSL is a discretionary grant program that exists to assist eligible educators in developing, implementing, improving, or expanding comprehensive Performance-Based Compensation Systems (PBCS) or Human Capital Management Systems (HCMS). TSL aims to drive improvement in a district’s HCMS for increased educator effectiveness and promotes comprehensive evaluation and support systems for all educators within an LEA, especially those employed in high-need schools. Additionally, the program seeks to study the fairness, quality, consistency, and reliability of PBCS or HCMS.

What is a High-Need School?

A high-need school is one with 50% or more of its enrollment from low-income families, based on eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch subsidies under the National School Lunch Act or Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) data.

How is the TSL Program Evaluated?

  • Percentage of teachers and leaders rated effective or higher
  • Percentage of teachers and leaders across the LEA(s) that show student growth improvement in their evaluation
  • Percentage of teachers and leaders within the TSL-schools that show student growth improvement, over the previous year, in their evaluation
  • Percentage of teachers and leaders in TSL-schools for whom evaluations were used for recruitment, hiring, placement, retention, dismissal, professional development, tenure, promotion
  • Percentage of teachers and leaders in the LEA(s) who earned performance-based compensation based on their individual evaluation
  • Percentage of teachers and leaders in TSL-schools who earned performance-based compensation on their individual evaluation ratings
  • Percentage of teachers receiving performance-based compensation
  • Percentage of leaders receiving performance-based compensation
  • Percentage of teachers receiving performance-based compensation for leadership responsibilities

Who is Eligible to Participate in the TSL Grant Program?

Local Education Agencies (LEA), State Education Agencies (SEAs), and non-profits in partnership with SEAs.

Research Associates' Impact:

Research Associates has helped to secure over $86 million in funded education grants for teacher and leader effectiveness initiatives including TSL program. Impacted schools include:

  • 23,210 students in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia
  • 1,799 educators
  • 46 schools across 4 districts

Contact the Grant Experts:

Could your schools qualify for funding? To find out more about program requirements and eligibility, contact our knowledgeable team at Research Associates.

From Our Partners

I have truly enjoyed working with you and all of the team. The support and guidance you have given to me cannot easily be put into words. Thank you for your commitment to us and our initiatives.

Project Director, South Carolina

RA puts in the time and detail to ensure they have input and buy-in from departments that will ultimately lead the work. Positive interactions and RA's commitment to creating a workable, high-quality proposal is evident. I appreciate the team's knowledge and willingness to talk through the budget and narrative as needed to get the result the district needs.

School District Grant Director, North Carolina

Working with RA was an excellent experience. Their team is so knowledgeable and skilled! Our team both loved and appreciated the amount of time RA spent with us as we conceptualized and planned our grant. They were active listeners and created a body of work authentic to our organization and this project.

Director, Virginia

The RA team shows a sincere interest in the program and builds a relationship with our team. I like the comprehensive approach to the process and that you have expertise in research, writing, project management, and editing.

Project Director, Florida

Thank you for helping us through this process and for your leadership. We look forward to working with you as we seek to impact literacy and help our children develop a love for reading.

Superintendent, North Carolina