Area schools ask: How should we spend all this stimulus cash?

Prince William County Public Schools has so much money, it doesn’t know yet what to do with it.

So, it’s asking the public for ideas on how to spend nearly $90 million in federal funds it just picked up in the latest round of stimulus funding. The school division will hold a public meeting Tuesday, June 15 at 6 p.m. at the Kelly Leadership Center, and virtually as an opportunity for residents’ input.

• Here’s the link to register for the public meeting.

For those who can’t attend the meetings, the school division has also placed a survey online asking residents how it would spend the cash.

The survey and the scheduled meeting come as Prince William County plans to return the majority of its students to the classroom this fall.

• The first day of school is August 23, 2021.
• This link has details of the division’s fall learning plan, outlining bell schedules, and other information.

Classrooms were shuttered for most of the year in 2020, and some students began to return to the classroom in January 2021 for hybrid learning, with some students in a classroom and others learning virtually from home.

Since the first round of coronavirus stimulus funds was rolled out in April 2020, Prince William County Public Schools has received nearly $130 million in funding. The division has used past funding to install plexiglass barriers in schools, as well as purchase masks, hand sanitizer, and other personal protective gear to protect students, faculty, and staff from the coronavirus.

Meanwhile, in Manassas, the city’s school division, also the recipient of the latest round of stimulus funds, will hold a similar meeting to gauge residents’ thoughts on how to spend the cash. The meeting, to occur during the regularly scheduled School Board meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 22, will also detail the school division’s fall back-to-school plans, as city students remained largely virtual for the 2020-21 school year that just ended, as officials opted not to return them to the classroom.

The school division tells us:

The School Board of the City of Manassas will hold a Public Hearing for citizens to attend and express their views of the expenditure of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding and the plan for the safe return to In-Person Instruction and continuity of services, Tuesday, June 22, 2021, 6:00 p.m.  Please note the location: City Hall, 9027 Center Street, Manassas, VA.

The city received $9.8 million in the most recent round of stimulus funding, and it’s considering spending it on teacher salaries, and building upgrades, according to a document provided to us by the school division. The cash must be spent by September 2024.

The city school division has received $15.3 million in stimulus funding since April 2020.