April 2, 2009 – Nebraska’s Senator Ben Nelson announced today that an infusion of $47.2 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is now directly available to school districts across Nebraska to boost teacher training, childhood education, online learning and address student academic achievement challenges.  These funds should not be confused with other American Recovery and Reinvestment Act dollars currently being debated in the Nebraska Legislature.
 
“Especially in today’s rocky economy, it’s critical that we shelter our educational system from the current economic storm to save jobs and to better prepare our children and their teachers for a stronger economic future,” said Senator Nelson. “Education creates opportunity and that is precisely what we want our children to have.”
 
The U.S. Department of Education announced on April 1 that it was awarding funding for several education programs to the states from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Nebraska is receiving $47.2 million in Title 1 grants from the stimulus bill. The grants are particularly useful to school districts because they provide financial assistance to help ensure all children meet state academic achievement standards and knowledge of state academic content.
 
According to the Department of Education, several hundred school districts across Nebraska are receiving Title 1 grants. Among some of the larger school districts receiving funds include:
 
 
  Omaha Public Schools              $21 million
  Lincoln Public Schools              $6.2 million
  Grand Island Public Schools      $1.1 million
  Millard Public Schools               $1.3 million
  Papillion-Lavista Schools           $497,540
  Bellevue Public Schools            $613,104
  Beatrice Public Schools             $232,569
  Columbus Public Schools          $280,811
  York Public Schools                  $208,396
  Hastings Public Schools            $442,097
  Kearney Public Schools             $483,000
  North Platte Public Schools       $470,178
  Scottsbluff Public Schools        $800,018
  McCook Public Schools            $127,445
 
  *A complete list is attached.
 
Following are guidelines from the Department of Education on potential uses of the Title I funds that are consistent with the recovery and reinvestment law:

• Establishing a system for identifying and training highly effective teachers to serve as instructional leaders in Title I schoolwide programs and modifying the school schedule to allow for collaboration among the instructional staff.
• Establishing intensive, year-long teacher training for all teachers and the principal in a Title I elementary school in corrective action or restructuring status in order to train teachers to use a new reading curriculum that aggressively works on improving students' oral language skills and vocabulary or, in some other way, builds teachers' capacity to address academic achievement problems;
• Strengthen and expand early childhood education by providing resources to align a district-wide Title I pre-K program with state early learning standards and state content standards for grades K–3 and, if there is a plan for sustainability beyond 2010–11, expanding high-quality Title I pre-K programs to larger numbers of young children;
• Providing new opportunities for Title I schoolwide programs for secondary school students to use high-quality, online courseware as supplemental learning materials for meeting mathematics and science requirements;
• Using longitudinal data systems to drive continuous improvement efforts focused on improving achievement in Title I schools;
• Providing professional development to teachers in Title I targeted assistance programs on the use of data to inform and improve instruction for Title I-eligible students;
• Using reading or mathematics coaches to provide professional development to teachers in Title I targeted assistance programs; and
• Establishing or expanding fiscally sustainable extended learning opportunities for Title I-eligible students in targeted assistance programs, including activities provided before school, after school, during the summer, or over an extended school year.

Senator Nelson played a key role in the passage of the $787 billion stimulus bill. He worked with a bipartisan group of nearly 20 Senators to better focus The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on tax cuts for the middle class and job creation for millions of Americans. Senator Nelson led the group through the initial bill line by line, dollar by dollar, to reduce spending and cut out $108 billion of inefficient or less-stimulative spending. The bipartisan group helped the improved bill win congressional approval. President Obama signed it into law February 17, 2009.
   
  Senator Nelson is posting information about the release of stimulus finds on his website as it becomes available.  Visit http://bennelson.senate.gov/issues/stimulus/index.cfm for more information.

###

Search:   Economy, Education, Press