Build Your Own Super App

Hi all, Kunjan here.

Last week, we said that instead of applying for a federal waiver, states should build their own Super App. This week, we’re walking through how that actually works.

Across the country, states are pouring enormous time and energy into negotiating one-off waivers with the federal government, often to accomplish things they could already do with better state-level design. 

Idaho offers a clear example. The Department of Education recently announced plans to seek multiple federal waivers aimed at increasing flexibility for districts and, in its words, “freeing schools from bureaucratic red tape.”

At its core, Idaho is trying to do four very reasonable things:

1. Make guidance clearer and less restrictive
2. Eliminate duplicative grant applications
3. Better connect school improvement planning to funding
4. Streamline how districts are monitored

Taken together, these goals reflect the right impulse: to make the right thing the easy thing for districts by aligning planning, funding, and outcomes.

Here’s the catch: every major change Idaho is requesting could be accomplished through a well-designed unified app — without having to ask the feds for permission.

A unified app, what we called a Super App in Louisiana, is a single, coherent application that helps states align federal funding, planning, and accountability around what matters most for students. It replaces dozens of disconnected plans and budgets with one shared strategy, making it easier for districts to plan well and for states to support what works — all using authority states already have.

Instead, Idaho is spending months convening workgroups, drafting waiver language, opening public comment periods, and going back and forth with the U.S. Department of Education. That process takes time and staff capacity, and it comes with no guarantee of approval.

States don’t need waivers to make their dollars work toward the priorities they’ve set for kids. They need to build a unified app.

How a build your own Super App

A few things have to be true for a unified app to work. We’ll walk through each one, using Louisiana to show what this looks like in practice.

1. Start with clear student outcomes

Louisiana started with a clear, classroom-level vision: When you walk into a classroom, kids will be reading grade-level text, writing and speaking about that text, and their teachers will be using a curriculum to facilitate that learning. Of course, Louisiana wanted to see test scores improve. But the starting point was getting clear about what good teaching and learning should look like every day.

From there, districts were asked to connect dollars directly to that vision, to name what they would fund to make it real in classrooms.

2. Align grants to those priorities

Once Louisiana was clear on the outcome, the next step was aligning the money to match it. Title I, Title II, Title III, Title IV, IDEA, and state literacy funds were all mapped back to the same early literacy goal. Districts didn’t apply to each program separately. They showed how each dollar supports the same literacy strategy (curriculum, training, intervention, assessment). This is what a unified app does best: it organizes spending around priorities, not funding sources, so dollars pull in the same direction rather than competing with one another.

3. Design a single application that connects plans and budgets

In the Super App, Louisiana asked districts to submit one aligned budget and one implementation plan. Instead of filling out multiple disconnected forms, districts explained — in one place — what they were doing and what they were buying as a result, who was responsible, and how they would measure progress. Because planning and budgeting lived together, districts could make intentional choices about how their dollars supported HQIM adoption and implementation.

4. Pair the application with strong guidance and support for LEAs

A better application doesn’t automatically produce better plans. LEAs received clear guidance up front, including rubrics that spelled out what the state was looking for and examples of what strong responses looked like. But much of the real support came after plans were approved. Louisiana focused state capacity on helping LEAs carry out the choices they had made through ongoing coaching, office hours, and implementation support tied directly to curriculum adoption and professional learning. The message to districts was clear: the Super App wasn’t just about getting a plan approved; it was about using that plan as a launch point for real instructional change. 

5. Allocate funding in ways that incentivize action

The Super App narrowed the universe of choices districts were asked to make. It required districts to show, clearly and succinctly, how their overall strategy connected to the state’s top priority and how each funding stream supported that strategy. Plans that were aligned to the literacy North Star — and built around high-quality instructional materials to achieve it — were rewarded with smoother approvals, fewer revisions, and faster access to funds.Over time, this changed behavior. The Super App made coherence the easiest path forward, and funding became a lever to reinforce those choices.

Like we said last year, “The Louisiana Story” isn’t perfect, but it is replicable. A unified app is a powerful way to use the flexibility states already have to support better planning—and, ultimately, better outcomes for students. And for states thinking about pursuing waivers, it’s worth taking a close look at whether these steps could accomplish the same goals, without needing federal approval at all.

Let’s get muddy

• School System Planning Guide— Provides an overview of the guidance districts received for completing the unified Louisiana application (Super App). 
• AR App Website— Example of a support page website containing the necessary information and resources for Arkansas’s application (AR App). 
• New Mexico UA Website— Example of a support page website containing the necessary information and resources for New Mexico’s application (UA).