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Frequently Asked Questions

Browse answers to frequently asked questions on all things ETAC. Topics include grant applications, user accounts, grant reporting, financials, and more. 

Contents

Grant Applications 

Who is eligible for a DoWEA grant?  

Local education agencies with military-connected student enrollment meeting the grant opportunity's threshold for the prior school year (e.g., 2024-2025 if applying for 2026) are eligible to apply. Note that enrollment thresholds vary among grant opportunities (e.g., WLARP vs. MAP).

 

 How can I find out about DoWEA grant opportunities?  

 Grant opportunities are posted to ETAC's Funding Opportunities Page and Grants.gov.  

 

What can I do if my Grants.gov Workspace is not accepting file uploads?  

There are several solutions you can try: 

  • Contact the Grants.gov Helpdesk for support. 
  • Try a different browser and/or delete the cache. 
  • Contact your organization’s IT staff to troubleshoot potential filtering issues. For example, your organization may need to add grants.gov to an SSL exclusion list to ensure it functions property. 
  • Save and attempt uploading your document as a PDF. The system sometimes has an easier time uploading PDFs than Excel files. 
  • Try later in the day when website traffic tends to be lower; this can reduce the occurrence of "Please wait" messages. 

Note: ETAC staff do not have administrative access to the grant application portal; your best bet will be the Grants.gov Helpdesk. 

 

How do I upload the contents of my DoWEA grant application in Grants.gov?  

Within the Forms tab in your Grants.gov workspace, upload each required form to the line with the corresponding title in the Application Package Forms table.  

Note: The one exception to this rule is the Project Narrative, which should be uploaded under the Attachments tab. 

 

I submitted my DoWEA grant application! How will I know it was received?  

Once you have submitted your grant application, you will receive a submission validation receipt from Grants.gov confirming that your application has been received and validated and is being prepared for retrieval by the grantor agency.  

Note: The DoWEA Program Team will not begin downloading (retrieving) applications until after the application window has closed. 

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ETAC Website User Accounts 

How do I request an ETAC portal account?  

Visit the ETAC website at dodeagrants.org. Click the Sign Up button in the upper right corner and fill out the request form. ETAC staff will then review your request and approve access if appropriate. For more information, check out this article.  

Note: If you are new to your grant project team, ask the current project director (or, if you are a new project director, ask the DoWEA program team) to contact ETAC and confirm the grantee, Federal grant ID number, and grant project role(s) you are associated with. The process of confirming and configuring your new account may take a few days. 

 

We’ve had a staffing change. How do we onboard a new Project Director to our Grantee Profile on the ETAC website?  

The current Project Director can take the following steps to initiate the process:

  1. Reach out to your DoWEA monitoring specialist to confirm the staffing change. This message should include the contact information and resume of the new project director.
  2. Notify the ETAC team of the change by emailing support@dodeagrants.org. This message should include:
    1. The federal grant award number  
    2. The new project director’s 
      1. First and last name 
      2. Title 
      3. Email address 
      4. Effective start date
    3. Instructions for the current or prior project director’s account (e.g., downgrade the level of access or remove it from the Grantee Profile)

       

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Reporting Access by Role

Who can create, edit, and submit programmatic reports?

Only project directors can complete semester, annual, and closeout reports. Evaluators and team members have view-only access to reports and are encouraged to use ETAC’s Reporting Resources to collaborate with PDs on responses and attachments to be included.

 

Who can create, edit, and submit financial reports?

Project directors and financial staff can complete these reports. Team members can view but not edit these forms. Those with an evaluator account do not have access to financial information.

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Reporting (General Questions)

When are reports due?  

Semester Reports: 

  • Fall Semester Report – due 1/31 
  • Spring Semester Report – due 7/31 

Annual Reports: 

  • Annual Report, including evaluation narrative (Years 1-4) – due 10/31 
  • Closeout Report, including evaluation narrative (Year 5) – due 9/30 

Financial Reports: 

  • Annual Financial Report (SF-425) (Years 1-5) – due 10/31 
  • Closeout/Final Financial Report (SF-425) (Year 5) – due 9/30 

Where can I find instructions for completing different types of reports?  

The Technical Assistance area of the ETAC website provides access to step-by-step guides and other resources for programmatic and financial reporting.

Why can’t I see or start a programmatic (semester, annual, or closeout) report?  

If you are an evaluator, financial staff, or other team member, you will not see a report until the project director starts it. Once they have created a draft, it will appear in your portal in the corresponding area of the reporting system.

While waiting for the project director to open the report, consider using ETAC’s Reporting Resources to familiarize yourself with the format and prepare your contributions.

 

How do I save or submit a report if error messages are preventing me from doing so? 

Error messages typically appear when information is missing from required fields (usually marked with a red asterisk). Complete those fields and try saving and/or submitting again. 

 

I have saved a draft of my report. Can the DoWEA Program Team view it now?  

No, the DoWEA Program Team are only able to view your report after you click the Submit button. 

 

How can I edit or update a submitted report?  

Contact ETAC at support@dodeagrants.org. ETAC can reopen reports for you up until the report deadline.

Note: Reopening a report changes the status from Submitted back to Draft or In Progress. Once you are done editing, you will need to click the Submit button again to make sure your report is returned to the submitted status. 

 

Why is the number of students and schools in the Target School Enrollment fields different from our current enrollment?  

The Target School Enrollment numbers are based on your original grant application. These data remain fixed as provided in the application and should not be updated to reflect  current enrollment.  

If there is a discrepancy between the Target School Enrollment numbers in your original application and the prepopulated reporting form, contact ETAC for assistance at support@dodeagrants.org. 

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Semester Reporting

Where can I find Semester Reporting Resources?  

General Reporting Resources are available in the Technical Assistance area of the ETAC website.

 

Why are the Strategies and Outcomes blank and un-editable on my 2025 Fall and 2026 Spring Semester Report?

Strategies and outcomes are intentionally blank and un-editable on Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 semester reports as part of the new reporting system roll out. You will have an opportunity to edit strategies and outcomes on the annual report starting in August 2026, at which point strategies and outcomes will auto-populate to future semester reports. 

 

Are 3 activities to be reported per goal or in total?  

Total – report on the three most impactful activities overall.

 

What if an activity applies to more than 1 goal? 

Since you can only select one goal per reported activity, select the goal the activity was most impactful for. If you want to note additional goals the activity impacted, feel free to do so in one of the text fields provided. Alternatively, if you consider the activity equally impactful for multiple goals, you can enter the activity for each goal, but be aware that this will count toward your 3-activity reporting limit.

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Annual Report

What should be included in the evaluation report narrative attachment?  

Suggested report structure: While there is not a single required structure for the condensed report (narrative attachment), here is a sample: 

  1. Executive Summary (½ page) 
  2. Goal Progress Overview (1–1.5 pages) 
  3. Major Activities & Outcomes (1–1.5 pages) 
  4. Professional Learning & Capacity Building (½ page) 
  5. Challenges & Resolutions (½ page) 
  6. Next Steps (½ page) 

What is the page limit for the evaluation report narrative attachment? 

5 pages, excluding the cover page and any appendices.  

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Closeout Report   

What is the page limit for the closeout report narrative attachment?  

20 pages, excluding the cover page and any appendices. See Completing a Closeout Report and/or the Final Evaluation Narrative page of the closeout report for more detailed guidance on formatting requirements, content to include, and how to upload the narrative.

 

What attachments do I need to include with the closeout report?  

The Final Evaluation Narrative should be attached to the closeout report as a PDF.

The Annual Federal Financial Report (SF-425)  is also required. A Tangible Property Report (SF-428) should be included only if you have equipment to report. The SF-425 and (if applicable) SF-428 should be completed in the reporting system and are automatically linked to your closeout report.

 

Can I attach photos and videos to the closeout report?  

Yes! The closeout report form includes a Document List area where you can attach photos and videos. Many project directors prefer to attach a single PDF or Word document with links to photos and videos. 

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Financials 

When are quarterly invoices due? 

Years 1-4 (Planning and Implementation Years):  

  • Quarter 1 – due 12/31 
  • Quarter 2 – due 3/31 
  • Quarter 3 – due 6/30 
  • Quarter 4 – due 9/30  

Year 5 (Closeout Year):  

  • Quarter 1 – due 12/31  
  • Quarter 2 – due 3/31 
  • Quarter 3 – due 5/31  


Where can I find guidance on how to fill out financial forms?

Financial Reporting Resources, including step-by-step guides to completing various financial forms and reports, are available in the Technical Assistance area of the ETAC website.

 

Who can help me with Wide Area Work Flow (WAWF) questions and issues?  

The WAWF helpdesk can assist you with WAWF system or account issues: 

 

What is the typical turnaround time on approval for Budget Change Requests?  

The DoWEA Program Team has 30 days to review budget change requests. If you are in a time crunch, reach out to the DoWEA Program Team at dodea.grants@dodea.edu.  

 

When is the cut off for claims in the closeout year?  

May 31st; please note that there is no grace period; however, the final invoice can include an advance (for personnel/fringe or supplies not yet received but encumbered prior to May 31). 

 

In the closeout year, when is the final claim (FS‑270) due?  

The final SF-270 is due by May 31st. 

 

In the closeout year, when is the final financial report (SF-425) due?  

The final SF-425 is due by September 30th. 

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Last Updated 6/3/2026