Funding Update May 30, 2024

STATUS UPDATE: ESSER FUNDS REMAINING

States continue to submit their SPEND of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds in the interest of transparency, as required by the federal government. The table below reflects the results submitted by states 3/30/24.

These funds have been instrumental in addressing the myriad challenges faced by schools, including learning loss, mental health crises, and the need for enhanced safety measures following the impact of the pandemic. But all the funds must be spent or obligated by September 30, 2024. As of 3/30/24, there remains nearly $40 billion in the states to be spent. Therefore, it is important to continue to track the progress of state spending, so education entities know there are still opportunities to avail themselves of the funds for the intended purposes as described in the regulations. 

SO WHAT?

As we mentioned in the ESSER status update of the February 29 report, the timeline for spending these funds continues to shorten.  So how can you position your products or services to schools for purchase using these funds?

  • Do Your Research – School districts are supposed to track their own spending of ESSER funds. They also should report the status of their SPEND. Don’t encourage them to spend what they don’t have. It may be on their website and/or in their posted budgets which must be presented at Board meetings

  • Summer School – it is not too late to put together a package for schools to purchase for summer school.  Remember that usually this is only a six-week period so adjust your pricing to reflect that

  • Back to School Campaign – It is not too soon to craft a compelling, price sensitive campaign to capture the final dollars that disappear after 9/30/24. Do not ask for multi-year contracts funded by ESSER. Also, identify if the district has secured an extension to spend the obligated funds through March 30, 2026. Can your product/service be paid over time as you deliver it.

Download the report here

For more information:

Jenny House, PhD.

jhouse@redrockreports.com




Funding Update May 23, 2024

STATE UPDATE: LOUISIANA BUDGET REVISION RENEWS FUNDS FOR EDUCATION

The latest version of the state budget plan was released Wednesday evening by the Louisiana Senate Finance Committee. Based on improved state revenue projections, senators have $197 million more to use in the current budget year and $88 million more in the next cycle.

In terms of education, the senators restored a $24.2 million cut in earlier versions of the budget proposal to early childhood education programs, which should preserve 2,000 slots for young children. They also added another $24.3 million to the state’s public school funding formula, which calls for spending more on tutoring services and supplemental pay to teachers in hard-to-fill positions. 

This new version of the state spending bill is expected to go into effect July 1.

Source: Louisiana Illuminator  May 23, 2024

SO What?

If you have a product or service targeted to early childhood education, then you should include Louisiana as a potential market:

  • Do you have a list of early childhood contacts in your CRM?

  • Do you include Louisiana early childhood contacts for marketing?

  • If you have a curriculum product, do you align with Lousiana’s Early Learning Standards? 

The second area Louisiana mentions in the budget is for tutoring services.  If you have a tutoring product, you should be familiar with the requirements of the  Louisiana Tutoring Initiative. 

Download the report here

For more information:

Jenny House, PhD.

jhouse@redrockreports.com

Funding Update May 05, 2024

CAPTURE THE FINAL ESSER FUNDS

As we all know, the final tranche of ESSER funds from the American Rescue Plan (ARP) must be spent or committed by September 30, 2024. But just how much is left to be spent?

Here is the summary of what has been spent and what remains, as of February 29. 

Esser Funds remaining by state as of February 29, 2024 

SO WHAT?

Even though these figures were last updated at the end of February, we can assume more money has been spent.  However, they will not have spent the entire $43B. Many of the school districts still have money to spend.  States and districts face a Sept. 30 deadline to obligate ESSER-ARP funds. After then, they have another four months — or until Jan. 28, 2025 — to actually spend down ARP money. Tips:

Most decisions about spending/obligating leftover funds will be made before school dismisses in June. In September they will be busy organizing the new school year, placing students and teachers. 

  • Have you communicated with your clients to remind them of your product with an offer? If not, be sure to do so ASAP to capture these leftover funds.

  • Do you have a summer school offer as many schools will buy product to address learning recovery and/or SEL?

  • Do you have a back-to-school offer as the last attempt to capture ESSER funds?

Currently, schools and states have 4 months past the September 30 2024 commitment deadline until January 28, 2025 to spend the funds. In January, the U.S. Department of Education notified schools and states that they could apply for a spending extension through March 30, 2026. That means a school still has to commit the funds by September 30 2024 but could actually spend the money through the extension period. To date only 0.17% of districts have applied for an extension and all have been approved.

  • States must submit their requests for extension by December 31, 2024.

  • Districts must apply for the extension through their state departments.

  • If you have a customer that the extension would help purchase your product or service, send them to this FAQ for more information.

    Download the report here

For more information:

Jenny House, PhD.

jhouse@redrockreports.com