Governor Abbott, Speaker Phelan and Lt. Governor Patrick announced today the state was releasing $11.2 billion of new federal funds for public education targeted at closing the pandemic education gap for k-12 students in Texas. This is on top of $2.2 billion distributed previously.
Arlington Independent School District is set to receive approximately $134 million. Mansfield ISD is set to receive slightly less than $30 million, Kennedale ISD just shy of $3 million and HEBISD about $31 million. About two-thirds of the funds can be applied for now. About one-third will be released later after federal approval.
These funds are designed to be used over the next three years. School districts and your Chamber have been putting pressure on the state to release the funds. Federal complications regarding qualifications to use the funds slowed the process according to the Texas Education Agency.
It is expected that full remediation will take three to four years or longer. A four-year study of student progress after Hurricane Katrina showed that at the end of four years students were back to grade level in math. At the conclusion of the study they were still not fully back to grade level in reading. Strategies developed from that study and others are being encouraged by TEA with the intention of making faster progress.
Click here to see the details of the available funds by Independent School District.