The clock is ticking to spend federal money helping students experiencing homelessness.
The plan for that $800 million in one-time American Rescue Plan funds must be laid out by the end of September. If states miss that deadline, they could leave tens of millions of dollars on the table nationwide.
According to the most recent federal data, 43% of that money has yet to be spent, though that doesn’t account for lags in reporting.
Regardless, Mountain West states are optimistic they’ll meet that cutoff.
So far in the region, the money has gone toward bus tickets, laundry tokens or motel rooms, according to Barbara Duffield with national advocacy group SchoolHouse Connection. She said this historic funding has also let districts, like one in Clark County, Nevada, hire designated staff to help this student population.
“There's someone who's literally walking them through, making the connections for them, eliminating all of those steps for housing, healthcare, employment-related needs, clothing,” Duffield said.
The Cherry Creek School District near Denver, Colorado purchased a van to help students get to school, according to Duffield. And the Monte del Sol Charter School in Sante Fe, New Mexico used money to fund its food bank and help families access rental assistance.
In Wyoming, according to a state spokesperson, money largely went toward providing short-term emergency housing for families that lost a place to live during the Covid-19 pandemic, but districts have also focused on other ongoing needs.
“Supporting homeless students with mental health needs, providing them the things they need to be able to fully participate in school, such as clothing, hygiene items and school supplies were additional focus areas for districts,” Linda Finnerty, chief communications officer at the Wyoming Department of Education, wrote via email.
A looming deadline
Despite all this spending, Mountain West states still have between 20 and 40% of funds left, according to state education departments. Those amounts range from about $450,000 in Wyoming (23%) to more than $2.5 million in Nevada (38%).
Credit: State departments of education, U.S. Department of Education
Duffield said many schools had never had resources to address homelessness, so it took time to identify needs. Plus, districts were flooded by other kinds of money during the pandemic for the entire student body.
Some states also said they’re using the money for large-scale projects that are still underway, and since a lot of these numbers are calculated through reimbursements, those big projects haven’t been accounted for yet.
Still, the U.S. Department of Education has made it clear to states recently that the agency is concerned about funds being spent, according to a Utah spokesperson.
“They were concerned about it enough that they have held several extra meetings to help states meet the closing deadline as best as possible,” Sharon Turner, the director of public affairs at the Utah State Board of Education, wrote via email.
Back to school
Duffield said with students getting back in classrooms, now is the time to spend the funds on items that have lasting value, like store gift cards.
“Back to school is intense,” she said. “Families have a lot of needs, everything from navigating enrollment, the supplies that they need, transportation, for example.”
According to Duffield, this historic funding has meant school districts could implement programs they had always dreamed of. She said the funding ending is “devastating,” but some districts will continue their programs.
“This should be the regular, the new normal,” Duffield said. “This is the level of funding that school districts need every day because homelessness is an emergency for all families that experience it. It's always a crisis.”
Districts have to decide how they’ll spend the funds for students experiencing homelessness by Sept. 30 and spend them by the end of January next year.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio (KNPR) in Las Vegas, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
