Resources

School districts across the country are receiving billions of dollars in federal relief aid. The unprecedented size of this investment — three separate aid packages providing nearly $200 billion for K–12 education alone — presents both an enormous opportunity and a challenge for state and local education leaders.

The principle question is, how can education leaders strategically invest these dollars over a three- to four-year period to address the enormity of students’ needs resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic?

As part of a planned series of policy briefs released in summer 2021, this report provides context on the sheer magnitude of this federal relief aid for K–12 education and describes the opportunities and challenges that the funding brings.

The brief concludes with seven strategies for how state and school district leaders can strategically invest federal relief dollars, in coordination with state and local funding, to accelerate student learning and address students’ current and long-term physical, social, and emotional well-being.