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Gov. Whitmer sending $65 million in CARES Act funds to Michigan schools

Updated  August 19, 2020 4:29pm EDT
Gretchen Whitmer
FOX 2 Detroit

LANSING, Mich. - Tens of millions of dollars in federal funding is being allocated to Michigan districts as the state's public schools ready up for an uncertain fall start to the year.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Wednesday that she was allocating $65 million in Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) dollars to school districts, higher education institutions and other education-related entities that have been most significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Gov. Whitmer sending 65M in CARES Act funds for Michigan schools

Millions of dollars in federal CARES Act funding will target districts most significantly impacted by COVID-19.

Among those receiving money will be schools in Michigan’s economically disadvantaged districts that lack the technological infrastructure needed to teach remotely.

“As we continue to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic and approach the start of the new school year, we must continue doing everything we can to protect our students, educators, and support staff. This funding will help us do just that, and ensure crucial support for our schools, whether it’s helping schools access PPE and cleaning supplies or helping students mitigate the impacts of learning loss in districts that need it most,” said Governor Whitmer during a Wednesday press conference. 

The vast majority of the funding will be directed toward districts determined to be significantly impacted by COVID-19. To ensure those districts receive the appropriate among of money, $60 million will be allocated to districts based on a few different factors, including:

  • Numbers of economically disadvantaged students
  • Special education students
  • Number of English language learners

The money, which will come out of the Governor’s Education Emergency Relief (GEER) fund, will be eligible to schools whose economically-disadvantaged students must be more than 50% of the district's total student enrollment. 

How the money gets spent will also come with its own rules. Districts that receive funds must use it for:

  • Building connectivity in the district with devices, internet access, and improving access to remote services
  • Enhancing services for student's mental health
  • Offering supplementary work to aid with learning loss due to the short school year
  • Ensuring students have safe spaces to learn remotely
  • Provide additional help for teachers designing curriculums that enables an effective learning model remotely

What isn't spent on needy school districts, about $5.4 million, will be sent to other education-related entities.