The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act provides almost $125 billion for education, including at least $109 billion that goes…
May 06, 2021 by EdTrust 
The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act provides almost $125 billion for education, including at least $109 billion that goes directly to local school districts. The amount of funding each state and school district receives is based on the share of that state or district’s Title I funding, and the U.S. Department of Education (ED) has already begun sending these resources out. In April, ED released a state application for the remaining funds. States must submit this application describing how the state will use ARP funds no later than June 7, 2021. School districts must develop high-quality plans, with engagement and input from stakeholders, for how they will use the ARP education funding — and they must publicly share these plans.
This unprecedented investment in education provides states and school districts with a chance to close opportunity gaps that existed prior to COVID-19, especially for students of color, students from low-income backgrounds, English learners, students with disabilities, and students experiencing homelessness. For perspective, the total investment in K-12 schools through the three federal packages signed into law — ARP, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act in April 2020, and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act in December 2020 — is nearly twice the $100 billion that was invested in schools through the 2009 American Reinvestment and Recovery Act to address the impacts of the Great Recession. Unlike those 2009 resources, the vast majority of funding provided over the last year will be directly awarded to school districts.
District leaders must target these new resources to the students who need it most, and leverage this federal investment to drive significant change in our education system. Local stakeholders, including students, families, community members, advocates, and educators, must remain vigilant to ensure these funds are not used to just do more of the same that would lead us back to a world of “pre-COVID” inequity. Now is the time to get engaged.
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