Overview of COVID School Spending

Alabama schools have received three rounds of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding. Below, we explain each round of funding and how both local districts and the Alabama State Department of Education are able to use these funds. To learn more about how your district spent their funds, visit our COVID School Spending tracker, linked here.

For a more detailed timeline of ESSER funds, click here. 

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security, or CARES Act, the first round of federal COVID-19 relief funds for states, passed in March 2020, and provided $216 million to Alabama schools as part of the ESSER I fund. At least 90%, or approximately $195 million of this funding was required to be sent directly to local districts, while the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) could keep 10% ($21 million). Because this portion of the money was allocated at the very beginning of the pandemic, the intent was to prepare and equip students and teachers for remote learning and pandemic learning. Districts were allowed to use their portion of the funds for: 

• COVID-19 safety, Sanitation, and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) supplies
• Technology, such as laptops, tablets, and wifi hotspots
• Professional Development for educators to teach remotely
• Mental Health Services
• Summer and Afterschool Programs*

The ALSDE used its allocated 10% to provide grants to districts for virtual instruction resources and updated its data reporting system. This money must have been spent by December 2020.

The Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (commonly known as CARES II) was the second COVID-19 federal relief bill passed in December of 2020 and sent a second round of funding to states and districts. This time, Alabama received $899 million, with $809 million (90%) going directly to local school districts and 10% going to the ALSDE. This time, districts were allowed to spend their money on: 

• Instructional materials
• Professional Development for teachers
• Assessments to gauge where students were in their learning 
• Remediation & Enrichment Programs
• Family Support Resources
• Salary & Benefits for Staff*
• Facility Improvements and Repairs

ALSDE used its 10% to provide school districts with grants for summer reading camps for grades K-3, which are required to be provided to struggling readers in the Alabama Literacy Act, professional development for the newly-passed English Language Arts and Math Courses of Study, and reading and math assessments for grades 4-8. This $899 million must be spent by September 2023. 

The American Rescue Plan, the third round of COVID-19 relief for states, was passed in March 2021. Alabama is receiving $2.02 billion dollars from this third installment of education funds. Like the last two rounds of funding, 90% of the state’s funding is required to go directly to local school districts to accelerate learning for Alabama students. Districts are required to spend at least 20% of their funding on strategies to address learning loss during the pandemic, such as high-quality summer and afterschool programs or other strategies. (You can read our report on how summer and afterschool programs can help students recover from pandemic effects on learning here.) To read more about allowable uses of ARP ESSER funds, click here.