Uncertainty remains on use of stimulus funds
05/09 -- Stimulus funds are going to be an enormous help to school boards struggling with budget cuts, but there is a great deal of uncertainty about how the funds can best be used, said the panelists at a news briefing on the stimulus during the Annual Conference.
“The stimulus is aimed at saving jobs, but the additional funding provided for Title I and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act must be used for specific purposes, not job retention. And that is causing some frustration,” said NSBA lobbyist Deborah Rigsby.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), enacted Feb. 17, provides more than $100 billion for education programs for fiscal years 2009 and 2010, including $13 billion for Title I grants, $12.2 billion for special education, and $53.6 billion in state fiscal stabilization funds.
The U.S. Education Department released the first $44 billion in stimulus funding for schools April 1, and followed up with another $108.8 million April 13, including $39.6 million in impact aid construction and modernization grants and $69.2 million in education services for homeless students.
According to a survey by NSBA, school boards are most interested in using stimulus funds for modernization, renovation, and repair of schools. Other needs cited by boards include staff retention and education technology.
The state budget approved in California is the first since the Great Depression to cut funding for education, causing districts across the state to make “catastrophic decisions,” said Scott Plotkin, executive director of the California School Boards Association. About 27,000 teachers are being laid off.
The state budget cuts $8 billion in education funds and is contingent on passage of a series of upcoming ballot measures, he said. If they don’t pass, another $5 to $6 billion will need to be cut.
While school boards in California would like to prevent layoffs, Plotkin urges caution until there are more detailed guidelines from the federal government. He would like districts to be able to restore jobs but doesn’t want school boards to “jeopardize the financial health of districts.”
The ARRA requires districts to implement effective reforms to advance student achievement. It isn’t clear whether districts can use stimulus funds to restore existing teaching positions that aren’t directly related to that objective, he said.
The Ramona Unified School District has a $6 million shortfall, while the stimulus will bring in about $2 million over the next two years, said school board member Luan Rivera.
The 6,400-student district eliminated 11 full-time teaching positions. It also cut summer school programs, increased class sizes, delayed textbook adoptions, and cut professional development.
California districts had to send pink slips to teachers by March 15, and any action to rescind layoffs must be announced by May 15.
“If we start bringing our staff back, then what happens?” said Rivera. “We need more information on the condition of the state budget and how the stimulus money can be used. And we have to decide how to use the funds to have the greatest impact on students.”