School divisions across Virginia are about to come into a large sum of money thanks to the American Rescue Plan.
Virginia school divisions will receive $2 billion from the American Rescue Plan, money that will be distributed based on the level of poverty. So Danville will get about $5,000 per student while Falls Church will get about $500 per student.
Chad Stewart at the Commonwealth Institute says that money should be spent on things like intensive tutoring.
"That could take place during school, after school, over summer hours," says Stewart. "But essentially the concept is providing extra time for students that have missed out on in-person learning and might face more barriers to accessing education during the pandemic."
Rachel Deane at the Legal Aid Justice Center says the American Rescue Plan money is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to plant seeds for education equity.
"I think it would be a mistake to start to use the money just to fill holes in things that we haven't funded over the years," explains Deane. "This is a real opportunity to bring communities together and start to look toward the future, not just filling in the gaps from the past."
The money doesn't come with a lot of strings, but one requirement is that school divisions have meaningful consultation with stakeholders. That's expected to happen this summer as school administrators ramp up for the fall semester.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
