SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio's 17 school districts can begin spending a portion of the nearly $750 million they've been granted now that state leaders have relaxed their grip on federal coronavirus aid.
A third of that grant money will not be allocated immediately, pending further guidance from the federal government.
San Antonio schools will receive nearly 7% of the state's $11 billion payout. Only four school districts in Texas are eligible for more money than San Antonio ISD.
"The majority of resources will be spent on additional instruction time for the students, but we want to infuse that with enrichment," SAISD Superintendent Pedro Martinez said.
Martinez says his district will use the money to add 30 optional days of class, effectively starting the school year a month earlier. Instead of reducing pay, SAISD will offer its teachers their full hourly rate for supplemental instruction.
The district will also invest a portion of its $207 million allocation into athletics, fine arts, clubs and other enrichment programs.
"The best way for children to grow academically is for them to look forward to going to school," Martinez said. "If a child doesn't want to go to school...they're not going to do well. It's just that simple."
SAISD will also raise its entry-level wages from $15 per hour to $16 per hour.
Like San Antonio ISD, Northside ISD will use a chunk of its $172 million allocation to hire more social workers and mental health counselors.
Northside ISD will also triple the size of its summer school program, extending instruction beyond the usual July 4 cutoff.
"For many of our students, that's simply not enough time this summer," NISD Superintendent Dr. Brian Woods said. "It's both more students, as well as a longer period of time per student."
Northside will enhance technology training for students and staff, and intends to upgrade its HVAC systems to improve air quality and circulation in classrooms.
"Essentially, what we're doing is thinking about, 'OK, what's the next pandemic look like?'" Woods said.
Woods says the district estimates, on average, students have fallen two months behind on reading and three months behind on mathematics studies. Course failure tripled in secondary schools during the pandemic.
SAISD says its course failure rate jumped from 15% to 30% at the onset of the pandemic.
Congress allocated some $18 billion to Texas schools to combat learning loss. State lawmakers have still not released about $7 billion of that funding, and it took months to release the first $11 billion.
"We are happy to know the state is releasing the federal funding made available to be able to provide resources for students and staff, including personal protective equipment, safety investments to districts and families, social emotional supports for students, staff, and families, remediation plans for learning loss, and technology support including connectivity, hardware, and software," Edgewood ISD said in a statement.
Texas allocated Edgewood ISD roughly $47 million.
Alamo Heights ISD can spend up to $3 million.
"The COVID-19 pandemic created unforeseen challenges that we have dealt with for a year, continue to deal with now and will deal with over the summer and into next year," a spokesperson for AHISD said. "While we still await TEA guidance about allowable expenditures for the federal funds, we know that the pandemic created particular needs, such as accelerated learning plans for the summer and into the fall for students of all grade levels, wrap-around services to support social/emotional wellness and overall health, technology needs, professional training, and additional staff needed to address all of these things."
Other allocations are listed below. Funding is tilted toward school districts with more economically-disadvantaged students.
- East Central: $15,089,222
- Harlandale: $38,719,933
- Judson: $43,595,882
- Lackland: $637,837
- Medina Valley: $5,412,757
- Northeas: $117,102,226
- Randolph Field: $201,016
- Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City: $7,566,711
- South San Antonio: $28,721,791
- Southside: $14,576,984
- Southwest: $32,934,389
- Somerset: $10,034,162