Mayor Cooper greets students at Inglewood Elementary’s first day back in the classroom, Feb. 9, 2021
Metro Nashville Public Schools is in the process of allocating the third and final round of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds, which will come from a variety of federal COVID-19 relief funds, including the American Rescue Plan and the CARES Act. This money is meant to support schools as they continue to respond to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In total, the state of Tennessee has received more than $4 billion in ESSER funding. Since March 2020, MNPS has received $26 million in the first round and $123 million the second, and is planning to spend $267 million in this final allotment.
MNPS states that the first two rounds of funding were spent on “student nutrition, online learning, software and devices, instructional supplies, intervention programs, additional school nurses, hotspot data plans, training stipends for teachers, graduation success coaches … COVID operations, academics, social emotional learning, transitions and more.”
The school board met on Thursday to discuss possible avenues for spending the third round of ESSR funding, prioritizing technological infrastructure, expanded academic programming, and faculty and student support.
All ESSER spending must align with parameters established by the Tennessee Department of Education, most of which include the aforementioned categories, as well as continued COVID-19 response and preparedness strategies. Federal laws also require that ESSER funding is spent by September 2024 and that community members have the opportunity to provide input on how they will be allocated.
While the ESSER funds provide opportunities to enhance educational resources, it’s important to note that spending must be strategically managed so as to avoid “fiscal cliffs.” Because ESSER funds are one-time allotments that have a limited lifetime, programs or initiatives that depend on these funds could be discontinued if they are unable to be sustained through other financial avenues later on.
Virtual community meetings will begin next week so that families and community partners can learn about the upcoming round of ESSER funds and provide feedback. MNPS will host three virtual meetings between Aug. 3 and Aug. 6. The schedule is as follows:
Family Engagement Session — Aug. 3, 6 p.m.
Community Organization Engagement Session — Aug. 4, 2 p.m.
Additional Family Engagement Session — Aug. 5, 9 a.m.
Families and organizations can register for these virtual events on the MNPS website.
After the community feedback meetings are complete, the completed ESSER plan will be released Aug. 16, after which there will be a short feedback period before plans must be submitted to TDOE by Aug. 27.
