What is the CARES Act?
“The CARES Act provides fast and direct economic assistance for American workers and families, small businesses, and preserves jobs for American industries.” –US Treasury
How does the CARES Act Support Educational Funding?
CARES Act’s Education Stabilization Fund has dedicated $30.7 billion dispersed among the states to spend on education. Below is the breakdown of amounts by category. Click to find dollar amount by state. $13.2 billion Elementary and Secondary School Education Relief Fund
- $14 billion Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund.
- $3 billion Governors Emergency Education Relief Fund, which governors can use for “significantly impacted” school districts or higher education institutions.
What are the “CARES Act” included in the CARES Act helping schools to fund SEL programs like SiLAS?
- Any activity authorized by the Every Student Succeeds Education Act of 1965
- Activities to address the unique needs of students with disabilities and English learners, including how outreach and service delivery will meet the needs of each population.
- Providing principals and others school leaders with the resources necessary to address the needs of their individual schools.
- Activities to address the unique needs of low-income children or students, children with disabilities, English learners, racial and ethnic minorities, students experiencing homelessness, and foster care youth, including how outreach and service delivery will meet the needs of each population.
- Developing and implementing procedures and system to improve the preparedness and response efforts of local educational agencies.
- Planning for and coordinating during long-term closures, including for how to provide meals to eligible students, how to provide technology for online learning to all students, how to provide guidance for carrying out requirements under IDEA and how to ensure other educational services can continue to be provided consistent with all Federal, State, and local requirements.
- Purchasing educational technology (including hardware, software, and connectivity) for students who are served by the local educational agency that aids in regular and substantive educational interaction between students and their classroom instructors, including low-income students and students with disabilities, which may include assistive technology or adaptive equipment.
- Providing mental health services and supports.
- Planning and implementing activities related to summer learning and supplemental afterschool programs, including providing classroom instruction or online learning during the summer months and addressing the needs of low-income students, students with disabilities, English learners, migrant students, students experiencing homelessness, and children in foster care.
- Other activities that are necessary to maintain the operation of and continuity of services in local educational agencies and continuing to employ existing staff of the local educational agency.
Funding Provisions of ESEA to Meet CARES Act Programs
- Title I: Support for the economically disadvantaged
- Title II: Support for professional development for educators
- Title IV: Student support and academic achievement
- Part B Funding: Federal funding to states for the education of children with disabilities and requires, as a condition for the receipt of such funds, the provision of a FAPE to children with disabilities between the ages of 3 and 21