Dive Temporary:
- U.S. schools used virtually $13 billion in federal pandemic help in 2021 to cowl misplaced income, serving to forestall cuts to jobs, educational packages and scholar help companies.
- The U.S. Division of Training on Wednesday launched a report detailing how schools leveraged pandemic support in 2021, the identical yr Congress handed the American Rescue Plan, which supplied almost $40 billion in support to schools. The upper ed sector obtained about $76 billion complete in reduction cash from a number of reduction packages, starting throughout the Trump administration.
- Faculties have been legally required to dedicate a big chunk of support to financially distressed college students. They reported distributing $19.5 billion in grants to 12.7 million college students in 2021.
Dive Perception:
Coverage specialists largely credit score federal pandemic support {dollars} with cushioning schools’ budgets throughout an economically tumultuous interval, making certain some establishments teetering getting ready to monetary wreck survived. Faculties obtained funding straight from the federal authorities, however native and state governments additionally benefited from the help packages, which doubtless helped them keep away from egregious cuts to public greater training spending.
How schools spend their share of the cash stays of eager curiosity, because the federal authorities has not handed a coronavirus rescue invoice since 2021, and the funding has began to dry up. Declining federal support additionally probably jeopardizes some establishments’ funds.
The White Home has described the federal government support as a lifeline to establishments and financially struggling college students. Biden administration officers reiterated this argument at a digital occasion Wednesday that includes Training Secretary Miguel Cardona and first girl Jill Biden.
Cardona mentioned throughout the occasion that the cash units the stage for a extra inclusive method sooner or later to serving to underresourced schools and college students.
Faculties, together with non-public nonprofit and for-profit establishments, spent greater than $39 billion in coronavirus support throughout 2021, based on the brand new Training Division report.
Public four-year schools spent essentially the most, greater than $21 billion, adopted by public two-year schools and personal nonprofit four-year schools, which spent about $9 billion and $8 billion, respectively, that yr.
Roughly three out of 4 establishments reported pandemic help helped them preserve web costs at pre-pandemic ranges. And about 9 in 10 schools mentioned the cash for college students enabled them to maintain some enrolled who have been prone to dropping out.
Public four-year schools gave about $10 billion to college students from their pot of reduction funding throughout 2021. Public two-year establishments distributed roughly $4.5 billion to college students that yr, and personal nonprofit schools disbursed $3.9 billion.
Two-year and four-year for-profits distributed $419 million and $250 million in scholar monetary support, respectively.
The report notes that as of Wednesday, schools have spent virtually 90% of their pandemic support. The Training Division will ultimately launch an in depth breakdown of 2022 spending.
