One News Now has reported the “American Rescue Plan” signed by Joe Biden in March includes approximately $125 billion for K-12 public education.
The federal government says it is allocating the record-breaking amount of funding to help students who fell behind during the COVID-19 pandemic, says Jude Schwalbach of The Heritage Foundation, but the public would be surprised to learn how the money could be diverted from the actual classroom.
"A lot of these dollars are going to fund teachers, fill budget gaps,” he says, “or maybe in some cases even hiring new staff, additional teachers, counselors, nurses, specialists.”
Now is a good time for parents and communities to speak up about pouring the money into the classroom, Schwalbach says, because budget plans won’t be finalized until after the summer.
“School districts are really supposed to listen to local community voices,” he says, “and take those into account how to spend these dollars.”
Schwalbach’s commentary about the federal education spending plan, published at The Daily Signal, can be read here.
