Frequently Asked Questions About Running a RIF Program

• I held a distribution outside my contract year. Why is this an infraction of RIF guidelines?
• We were recently approved for federal funding. Do I receive a check?
• What do I do if one site of my multi-site program does not follow RIF guidelines?

Q: I held a distribution outside my contract year. Why is this an infraction of RIF guidelines? 

A: One of the guidelines to which RIF programs must adhere is running all program activities within their contract year. If a RIF program runs outside of its contract year, it is not considered to be operating as a RIF-approved program. Programs that are not RIF-approved are NOT eligible to use RIF service marks, RIF-negotiated discounts on books, or federal funds. Therefore, local RIF programs must renew their RIF contracts annually.

Subcontract agreements are reviewed annually because national RIF must closely monitor all local RIF programs since they are using RIF-negotiated discounts for books and often federal funds. RIF is evaluated by the U.S. Department of Education to ensure that federal funds are being used properly. Part of the consideration for renewal is RIF's use of the previous year's federal funds. Also, RIF has made agreements with book suppliers to provide discounted books ONLY to children in RIF-approved programs.

Programs that operate outside their contract year jeopardize the contracts RIF has with the U.S. Department of Education and with book suppliers.

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Q: We were recently approved for federal funding. Do I receive a check? 

A: Federally funded programs receive 75 percent of their book budget from a federal source. Migrant programs receive 100 percent of their book budget from a federal source. Checks are NOT, however, written to local RIF Programs. Instead, RIF federal funds help to pay for book invoices that are sent directly to RIF. You can find more information on how to pay book invoices in Receiving Your Order, or you can refer to your RIF Handbook.

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Q: What do I do if one site of my multi-site program does not follow RIF guidelines?

A: Multi-site program coordinators are responsible for ensuring that all sites in their program follow RIF guidelines. It is extremely important that multi-site coordinators are aware of the activities of each of their sites, because RIF requires that ALL sites comply with published guidelines in order to remain with the program.

Usually, multi-site coordinators meet with site coordinators on a regular basis, conduct orientations and training for new site coordinators, periodically visit distributions to ensure that all is going well at each site, and carefully track the progress of each site through phone calls and paperwork. Some coordinators use a site agreement of participation or guidelines checklist that must be signed by each site coordinator. If these multi-site programs continue to have problems with a particular site, a probation system within the program often deals with the problem.

If you are having trouble with one or more of your sites not following RIF guidelines, it is important for you to notify a RIF regional program specialist. National RIF must be kept informed of your efforts to keep each site within guidelines. Knowing that you took measures helps to minimize the consequences to your overall program at the end of the year.

You can find more tips about running an effective multi-site RIF program in your RIF Handbook. If you have further questions, call a regional program specialist (1-877-RIF-READ).

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