ESSER Funds

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief federal pandemic relief funds

Explainer

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Everything You Need to Know About Schools and COVID Relief Funds
How much did your district get in pandemic emergency aid? When must the money be spent? Is there more on the way? EdWeek has the answers.
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Illustration of a large dollar sign with small people running, jumping and climbing to get to end.
DigitalVision Vectors
School & District Management Superintendents Share the Lessons They've Learned From ESSER—and Look Ahead
The four finalists for the 2024 National Superintendent of the Year award reflected on the lessons they learned from pandemic relief aid.
Caitlynn Peetz, January 17, 2024
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5 min read
Chicago charter school teacher Angela McByrd works on her laptop to teach remotely from her home in Chicago, Sept. 24, 2020.
Chicago charter school teacher Angela McByrd works on her laptop to teach remotely from her home in Chicago, Sept. 24, 2020. In Montana, a district hopes to save a virtual instruction program by converting it into a charter school.
Nam Y. Huh/AP
School Choice & Charters How a District Hopes to Save an ESSER-Funded Program
As a one-time infusion of federal funding expires, districts are searching for creative ways to keep programs they funded with it running.
Mark Lieberman, January 10, 2024
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6 min read
Conceptual illustration of business people, a roll of paper, and the people using computers, a magnifying glass and telescope with the year 2023 as a shadow below them.
Liz Yap/Education Week and iStock/ Getty.
Budget & Finance 2023 in School Finance: Legal Fights, School Choice Debates, Persistent Inequities
Highlights of the year in school finance coverage include school funding lawsuits, private school choice legislation, and the looming financial storms brewing.
Mark Lieberman, December 22, 2023
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6 min read
Illustration of maze.
DigitalVision Vectors
School & District Management 5 Challenges School District Leaders Will Face in 2024
District leaders will face challenges with finances, absenteeism, and politics in the next year.
Evie Blad, December 15, 2023
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7 min read
tight crop of sand running through an hour glass with a blurred photo of Benjamin Franklin in the background
iStock/Getty
Budget & Finance From Our Research Center When ESSER Funds Are Gone, Here's Where Districts May Turn to Fill Gaps
Districts will look to a range of funding sources to cover the services they've paid for in recent years with a surge of federal money.
Mark Lieberman, December 5, 2023
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4 min read
Multi-ethnic preschool boys playing with blocks.
E+ / Getty
Student Well-Being How Districts Can Keep After-School and Summer Learning Alive After ESSER Dries Up
Roughly 8 in 10 school districts spent some of their federal COVID relief funds on after-school or summer learning.
Alyson Klein, December 4, 2023
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4 min read
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an afterschool literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through fifth grade.
Michael Crowder, 11, right, reads to Tim McNeeley, left, during an after-school literacy program in Atlanta on April 6, 2023. McNeeley, director of the Atlanta-based Pure Hope Project, hosts the daily program for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
Alex Slitz/AP
Student Well-Being Districts Make Tutoring a Top Priority in After-School Programs Funded by COVID Relief Aid
Roughly 8 in 10 school districts spent part of their federal COVID relief funds on afterschool or summer learning.
Alyson Klein, October 25, 2023
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3 min read
Illustration of a piggy bank with falling clocks entering the bank.
iStock/Getty
Budget & Finance Need More Time to Spend ESSER Funds? Contact Your State Now, Ed. Dept. Says
Many school officials have been seeking more time to spend the billions in one-time funds they received from federal COVID-relief packages.
Mark Lieberman, October 23, 2023
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3 min read
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in his office at the Department of Education on Sept. 20, 2023 in Washington.
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in his office at the Department of Education on Sept. 20, 2023, in Washington. In an interview with Education Week, Cardona said "there hasn’t been another president in our lifetime that has spoken so much on providing dollars for education but also having education be central to the growth of this country."
Mark Schiefelbein/AP
Federal Q&A Miguel Cardona: There's No 'Magic Strategy' to Help Students Get Back on Track
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said he's focused on supporting schools on work they're already doing to help students achieve.
Libby Stanford, October 19, 2023
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8 min read
President Joe Biden greets students at Eliot-Hine Middle School in Washington on Aug. 28, 2023. Biden visited the school, located east of the U.S. Capitol, to mark the District of Columbia's first day of school for the 2023-24 year.
President Joe Biden greets students at Eliot-Hine Middle School in Washington on Aug. 28, 2023. Biden visited the school, located east of the U.S. Capitol, to mark the District of Columbia's first day of school for the 2023-24 year.
Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
Federal The Biden Administration Still Hasn't Defined Its K-12 Agenda. Why?
With achievement in math and reading hitting its lowest point in decades, some want to see more urgency from the Biden administration.
Libby Stanford, October 18, 2023
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11 min read
Phoenix Blalack, 6, works with a tutor on his laptop in his Indianapolis home on March 7, 2023.
Phoenix Blalack, 6, works with a tutor on his laptop in his Indianapolis home on March 7, 2023.
AJ Mast/AP
Budget & Finance Tutoring Can Be Costly. Here's How to Make It Cost-Effective
As a federal funding cutoff looms, some districts are finding ways to make intensive tutoring sustainable.
Sarah D. Sparks, September 25, 2023
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9 min read
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iStock/Getty Images Plus
Budget & Finance District Leaders Want More Time to Spend ESSER Funds—and More Money, Too
On Capitol Hill, superintendents pointed to big wins fueled by federal relief aid, from extended learning time to mental health support.
Mark Lieberman, September 21, 2023
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4 min read
Budget & Finance Quiz Quiz Yourself: How Much Do You Know About Strategies for Closing the Funding Gap?
Answer 7 questions about school funding after ESSER.
September 8, 2023
Illustration of a dollar sign falling over a cliff.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Education Funding Explainer 3 Steps to Keep Tutoring Going When ESSER Money Runs Out
Schools may lose more than $1,200 per student as enrollment falls and federal COVID relief funds expire next year.
Sarah D. Sparks, August 28, 2023
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4 min read
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