Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief

This week, the federal government released $81 billion out of $122 billion of the American Rescue Plan’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund to the States. See https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/biden-harris-administration-announce-new-actions-help-schools-reopen-safely-and-meet-students%E2%80%99-needs. On March 24, 2021, New York State was allocated $5,992,520,557 out of a possible $8,988,780,836. The purpose of the funds is to support the safe return to in-person learning as quickly as possible. The funds are also meant to address the academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs of all students.

A portion of the funds are earmarked for evidence-based summer learning and enrichment programs. These summer programs are meant to address lost instructional and extracurricular time, with a focus on students disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.

According to a report of survey data compiled by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, “When learning remotely, many students were receiving two hours or less of live instruction.” Additionally, “More than 40 percent of schools self-reported prioritizing students with disabilities for full-time in-person instruction at grades 4 and 8, but students with disabilities did not receive in-person instruction at markedly higher rates than other student groups.“

For more information on your child’s special education rights during the pandemic, book a consultation on my website, https://www.msrlegal.org/book-your-consultation . Continue to follow us on Instagram @MSRLegalConsulting and Twitter @MSRLegalOroma where I’ll be closely following this topic of school reopenings for children with disabilities.

Have a great spring break!

Oroma

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