|
ESSER III, the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund grant program authorized under American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act, provides additional money for local educational agencies (LEAs) to prevent, prepare for, and respond to COVID-19. ESSER III supplements ESSER I, created by the CARES Act in March 2020, and ESSER II, created by the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act in December 2020.
The requirements of this third installment are more stringent than the first two rounds of the grant. It should be noted this is one-time funding. It is essential for districts to keep this in mind when planning and allocating for the use of funds. The funds are intended to prevent, prepare for and respond to COVID-19 and the effects the pandemic has brought to school districts.
Requirements include:
- Develop and post a Safe Return to In-Person Instruction and Continuity Plan
- Reserve 20 percent of funds for Evidence-Based Intervention Strategies (EBIS)
- Provide 80 percent of funds to safely open schools
- Provide stakeholders the opportunity to share feedback on the use of the funds
Three Lakes School District has been awarded $647,422. Although there are restrictions, there is also flexibility in how we can spend these funds. We must be cautious in allocating this money where there will be recurring costs post completion of the ESSER III grant. Some allowable expenses include but are not limited to:
- Review of school safety plans
- Determine physical infrastructure enhancements to promote health and safety
- Building modifications to add necessary space or repurpose existing spaces
- New construction to support health and safety
- Train food service staff on special precautions
- Additional FTE coverage including nursing and janitorial staff
- Supplies for sanitizing and cleaning in all school settings
- Adding course materials to minimize sharing
- Hiring substitute teachers
- Preparation to allow for shift from in-person to hybrid model and asynchronous online learning
- Supports for family dynamics during remote instruction
- Supports for teachers to teach from a remote site
- Increase internet reliability
- Provide meals during closure
- Hardware and software to support assistive technology
- Hire additional social workers
- Summer learning programs
- Summer reading interventions
Additional information can be found at by clicking here.
| 