In March 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was signed into law. The CARES Act dedicated $13.2 billion for K-12 schools through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund. This grant is known as ESSER I. The intent and purpose of ESSER I funding is to provide emergency relief funds to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus. ESSER I funds can be used to cover expenses incurred March 13, 2020, through September 30, 2022.

District 39 applied to receive its ESSER I allocation June 19, 2020. District 39’s ESSER I allocation of $56,002 was used to purchase 9 no-touch thermometers to quickly scan staff and student temperatures as they arrived at school. These thermometers were used to ensure that students with a fever were identified, provided care, and referred for follow-up treatment/diagnosis/quarantine prior to returning to school.

In December 2020, the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSA) was signed into law. CRRSA dedicated an additional $54.3 billion to the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund. This grant is known as ESSER II. District 39 originally applied for ESSER II funds on June 28, 2021. District 39’s ESSER II allocation was $314,234 and the funds were designated for professional development to meet the mental health needs of students, professional development in data literacy and analysis to better target instruction interventions, resources to support teachers in addressing mental health needs, and items to expand our physical plant to meet the unique needs of educating students during COVID-19.

EXPENDITURE DESCRIPTIONS

Mental Health
Amount Allocated: $33,600
Timeline for Implementation: Fall 2021-Sept. 2023

Professional development to meet the mental health needs of students as a result of COVID. Professional development activities will include the following: trauma-informed instruction/schools, building responsive classrooms, embedding social emotional learning throughout the day/lessons, and other topics related to supporting the social emotional learning and mental health needs of students.

Learning Needs
Amount Allocated: $16,000
Timeline for Implementation: Fall 2021-Sept. 2023

Professional development in data literacy and learning needs to analyze student data and identify needed interventions to target learning loss and differentiate instruction and support to meet the needs of all learners.

Mental Health Resources
Amount Allocated: $6,000
Timeline for Implementation: Fall 2021-Sept. 2023

Resources (books, videos, materials) to support the professional development focusing on creating the following responsive classrooms, embedding social emotional learning throughout the day/lessons, and other topics related to supporting the social emotional learning and mental health needs of students.

Safe Learning Environments
Amount Allocated: $6,000
Timeline for Implementation: Fall 2020-Sept. 2023

Funds used to rent large tents and hand washing stations to support the safe operation of school. Tents will be used to provide additional learning spaces for students as well as alternate locations for lunch to promote health, safety, increased ventilation and social distancing.

In March 2021, the American Rescue Plan (ARP) was signed into law. ARP dedicated $122 billion to the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund. This grant is known as ESSER III. The intent and purpose of ESSER III is to help safely reopen, sustain the healthy and safe operation of schools and address the impact of the coronavirus on students. Part of the ESSER III grant requires each school district to develop and publish a plan for the safe return to in person instruction and continuity of services. During 2021 spring/summer months, District 39, along with other districts across the nation, began planning for a successful 2021-2022 school year.  Priorities were set and they included:

Prioritizing the health and safety of students, staff, and educators,

Building school communities and supporting students’ social, emotional, and mental health, and 

Advancing academic achievement and growth for students.

These district priorities satisfy the requirements needed to access funding from the American Rescue Plan/Elementary and Secondary School Education Relief (ESSER) Fund.   

District 39 will apply to receive its allocation of ESSER III funds before September 30, 2021, based on feedback from stakeholder groups. Prioritization of fund allocation has been informed by the Strategic Planning Team, which included students, parents, community members, teachers, administrators, and Board of Education members. 

Additional feedback will be sought from the Board of Education, public comment, and communication from parents and community members. District 39’s ESSER III allocation is $708,636. These funds are supplemental to District 39’s budget and will be used to address the impact COVID-19 has had. 

District 39 will utilize ESSER III funds to address the impact COVID-19 has had, and continues to have, on our students and schools. District 39 is required by statute to set aside 20 percent of its total ESSER III allocation to address learning loss. ESSER III funds can be used to cover expenses incurred March 13, 2020, through September 30, 2024. Pending feedback from the Board of Education and public feedback, District 39 currently plans to use ESSER III funds to support the following:

EXPENDITURE DESCRIPTIONS

Loss of Learning *
Amount Allocated: $100,000
Timeline for Implementation: School Year, 2021-22

District 39 will allocate funds to an online tutoring service for students who demonstrated low growth on MAP test scores between Fall, 2020 and Fall, 2021. Priority will be determined based on a combination of growth and achievement. 

Loss of Learning *
Amount Allocated: $50,000
Timeline for Implementation: Summer 2022

Funds will be allocated to the Summer Enrichment Program for Summer 2022 to support students who continue to struggle. Summer Enrichment Program funds will be allocated to support students in preschool through 7th grade (8th grade students will graduate). Priority will be given to our youngest students (PS-2).

Mental Health/SEL (Professional Development)
Amount Allocated: $75,000
Timeline for Implementation: School Years 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24

Many students were adversely impacted by the pandemic and have shown stresses related to mental health and social emotional development. Funds will be allocated to provide intensive training to teachers and other faculty members in how to establish and support responsive classroom environments and school communities. This will help teachers and faculty embed social emotional competencies into daily instruction. Additional professional development will be provided to teachers and faculty around trauma-informed practices and executive functioning. The goal of this professional development is to ensure that our teachers and faculty have the training to create learning communities that ameliorate the adverse impact of the pandemic on social emotional learning and mental health for our students. These funds will be used to support teachers and faculty district-wide, from preschool through 8th grade.

Parent Education
Amount Allocated: $25,000
Timeline for Implementation: School Years 2021-22, 2022-23

District 39 is committed to engaging parents as partners and collaborators in the education of their children. In order to further this partnership, District 39 will host a series of parent education events focused on a variety of topics, including the return to full in-person learning, mental health, responsive classrooms, executive functioning, transition activities, and home-school collaboration.

Remote Learning/Parent-Teacher Collaboration
Amount Allocated: $25,000
Timeline for Implementation: School Year 2021-22

Due to the continued limitations on in-person meetings and the continued need for remote instruction during periods of quarantine, District 39 will purchase Zoom licenses to facilitate remote learning, family engagement and collaboration.

Mental Health/SEL (Student Activities)
Amount Allocated: $20,000
Timeline for Implementation: School Years 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24

Students experienced a great deal of social isolation throughout the pandemic, and continue to have restrictions placed on social interactions. District 39 will allocate funds to increase the extracurricular programming to support students who benefit from peer support with mental health, anxiety, and social emotional development. These funds will be focused on students in middle school and junior high school (grades 5-8).

Improving Facilities at All Schools
Amount Allocated: $130,383
Timeline for Implementation: School Years 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24

The restrictions and limitations posed by COVID-19 continue to impact daily instruction. Students, teachers and administrators have identified the benefits of having access to outdoor learning spaces as much as possible. These outdoor spaces support learning during the pandemic, but will continue to offer benefits for many years. District 39 will invest in outdoor learning spaces to support improved health and safety. Funds allocated will support shade structures, outdoor furniture, and learning materials.

Intervention Resources and Curriculum
Amount Allocated: $200,000
Timeline for Implementation: School Years 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24

District 39 has a robust system of supports for students who struggle academically. In reviewing the resources and curricular materials to support students, District 39 has determined that there is a need to purchase additional resources to support instruction for students receiving intervention services. New materials will focus on math and reading intervention, assessment tools, and other research-based materials and curricular resources.

Improvement of Instruction/Professional Development
Amount Allocated: $100,000 ($50,000 per year)
Timeline for Implementation: School Years 2022-23, 2023-24

To personalize professional development and ensure that staff members have the specific training to meet the individual needs of their students, District 39 will develop peer-to-peer instructional coaches who will engage staff members in job-embedded professional development. Instructional coaching occurs during classroom instruction where instructional coaches observe teachers, model teach, provide feedback, and engage in meaningful discussion with teachers about their lessons and student learning. This type of professional development occurs within the actual classroom setting, is very meaningful and has been shown to positively impact student learning.

* Required to allocate at least $141,077 for Loss of Learning. 

• ESSER III Board of Education Memo (April 2023)

• ESSER III Amendment Descriptions 

• ESSER III Presentation (December 2023)