Wisconsin schools were awarded almost $2.4B in one-time federal pandemic relief funds. How have they been spending it? A recent report has provided an in-depth look
Here’s Five Fast Facts About Our Schools’ Pandemic Relief Spending:
- 🚌Where did it come from? - There’s been three batches of federal funding in the form of Elementary and Secondary School Education Relief (ESSR) funds that went to every school district, and one batch of state funding from the Governor's Emergency Education Relief, (GEER) that went to less than half of the state's districts.
- 🎒Who got what? - A majority of the ESSER money was distributed based on student income, with more money going to schools with more low-income students. GEER funds were sent out using a formula based on economic status, access to technology and test scores.
- 1️⃣How is it being spent?- Most of the first round went to educational technology expenses (think laptops and hotspots for at-home learning), COVID-19 response (things like disinfectants, PPE and updated ventilation) and long-term school closures (Paging Alice Cooper).
- 2️⃣What about Round Two? - The top three areas have stayed the same, but the order has changed. Long-term closures tops the list, with COVID response and technology following.
- 3️⃣And Round Three? - It hasn’t been allocated yet but it will need to be spent by the end of 2024. It’s important to note that all of this money is only good for a limited time. Whatever isn’t spent cannot be used for regular annual budgetary purposes or lottery tickets.
🔥Bottom line: Schools were amongst those hit hardest by the pandemic. Much like everything else, their recovery has been a slow process. Reports like this one are a great way to keep school officials honest and show us regular folk that our money is being spent properly.
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