APS District Receives Nearly 2 Million in Federal Education Grants
Naomi Bloom and Eva Liss
STAFF WRITERS
Through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), the federal government has provided just under $2 million to help support Andover Public Schools, where the COVID-19 pandemic has left a lasting impact on students.
The Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds (ESSER) are federal educational grants given to aid schools during the pandemic. The first part, ESSER I, granted the Andover Public School district just over $150,000 issued in March of 2020. It was geared towards helping schools adapt to the pandemic and the switch to remote learning. The second grant, ESSER II, was passed in December of 2020, giving over $550,000. This grant was given to support schools in their attempts to reopen buildings and keep people safe, as well as to fund professional development, social emotional training, and academic support for learning loss. Andover has applied for an additional $1.25 million through the ESSER III grant, which is targeted at fighting learning loss and supporting students’ mental health in these challenging times. As the status of the pandemic and school districts’ needs are constantly shifting, the aim of the ESSER funds is also changing to match what is needed at the time. Some of this money still continues to fund the daily needs of APS schools, Andover High School included.
“We hand out over 100 masks every day to students coming in; [there are new] desks coming in,” said AHS principal Caitlin Brown, speaking on how some of the money has been allocated. “We’re also running some preemptive programs to help students who may need some support, like academic support… where we’re helping them catch up in their work so they don’t get behind.”
As the aim of ESSER I was to help schools adjust to the pandemic and reopen, much of the grant was spent on devices for remote school, more desks for socially distant classrooms, cleaning supplies, and personal protective equipment (PPE). ESSER I has mostly been spent, although some of it is still going to daily supplies, such as the masks distributed at the doors of AHS each day.
The second grant, ESSER II, was meant for a combination of combatting learning loss and contributing to daily school needs. As the focus of APS shifted from remote learning to hybrid learning and keeping students and teachers safe in that environment, so did what the federal money was being used for. The deadline for ESSER II’s spending is 2023, and currently it is being spent on daily supplies for AHS, salaries for substitutes caused by teacher absences due to the pandemic, and making sure ventilation is up to code. It is also being used to fund supplementary learning programs, such as before-school programs and academic enrichment, or social emotional learning (SEL) training for teachers.
“This is a true mental health crisis,” said APS superintendent Dr. Magda Parvey, speaking of the emotional and mental state the pandemic has left on school communities.
Fortunately, the district is looking to the third grant, ESSER III, as a possible solution. APS has applied for the grant, which, if spent by the deadline in 2024, would deliver over $1 million to the district. Much of this money would go to training for teachers, such as SEL training and how to help students who are struggling due to the pandemic. Brown also added that a main priority of APS schools always has been, and should be, meeting the needs of their students. “Based on what the survey said,” Brown stated, in regards to a survey sent out to families about what the funds should be used for, “there was a lot of support for more mental and social emotional support training… we’re still in this space and we really just want to be prepared and make sure we’re ready to meet the needs of our students and staff.”
The APS district also plans to use the grant as a supplement for learning, such as funding summer school programs if necessary. The pandemic is not over yet, and the funding may not be, either. “I don’t think we’ve seen the end results of the funding,” Brown said, “but I’m hopeful that it will continue to help out students.”
