April 30, 2020 For Immediate Release
BALTIMORE — Baltimore City Public Schools is backing a plea by the Council of the Great City Schools to the U.S. Congress seeking approval of $200 billion in new funding for local school systems in the next coronavirus supplemental appropriations bill. The funding would help offset the unexpected costs districts are incurring in providing meal services to students and transforming from school-based to home-based learning in the wake of school closures.
The Council of the Great City Schools is the nation’s primary coalition of large urban public school districts. City Schools CEO Sonja Brookins Santelises joined 62 other big-city school leaders recently in signing a letter to Capitol Hill calling on additional allocation of federal funds. The request includes:
- $175 billion in Educational Stabilization Funds to be distributed to the local level through the Title I formula
- An additional $13 billion for the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
- $12 billion in additional Title I program funding
- $2.0 billion for E-Rate, and emergency infrastructure funds that include public schools
“The Council’s request to Congress is fully aligned with the needs of students not only in Baltimore City but also our peers in urban school districts nationwide. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed City Schools to employ extraordinary measures to provide students with learning experiences regardless of neighborhood, economic status, or other needs. Meals, computers, and learning technology are stretching our budgets in ways we could never have anticipated,” Santelises said. “We are supportive of the Council’s request because it reflects what many school districts are feeling. Baltimore City Public Schools knows we have the support of our congressional representatives, and we are hopeful their colleagues respond to the plea of school districts nationwide.”
According to a news release by the Council, declines in state and local revenues, and significant revenue shortfalls are looming for local school systems, with several big-city school districts projecting 15 to 25 percent cuts in overall revenues going into next school year. According to the Council, an estimated 20 percent loss in combined state and local revenues would likely result in some 275,000 teachers being laid off in big-city public school systems alone.