The La Feria Independent School District (the District, La Feria ISD) is eligible to apply and receive the ARP ESSER III grant program, authorized in the American Rescue Plan (ARP), signed into law in March 2021. The period of availability for ARP ESSER III grant funds is from March 13, 2020 (with pre-award), to September 30, 2024 (with carryover/Tydings Amendment).
The American Rescue Plan provided over $122 billion funds through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER III) grant to school districts across the United States to address the impact COVID-19 has had, and continues to have, on elementary and secondary schools. In April 2021, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) announced the release of $11.2 billion appropriated for public education in Texas. TEA’s Entitlements page provides a link to Grant Allocation Amounts for each district’s allocation.
La Feria ISD has setup stakeholder meetings to engage with all district stakeholders to help determine how the District should potentially spend these additional one-time federal funds to address student learning and COVID-19 recovery.
The District’s plan is to use ESSER III funds to address the learning loss created by the pandemic through the implementation of interventions, summer learning, enrichment programs, and afterschool programs. The District also plans to use these additional federal funds to address the safe re-opening of all its campuses for in-person instruction.
See the District’s Return to School 2022-2023 Protocols, which the District will continue to update as needed based on updated recommendations.
SURVEY
All parents, district employees, students and community members are encouraged to complete this survey, to provide input to help the District determine how the ESSER III one-time federal funds should be used. Per Section 2011(e)(1) of the ARP Act, school districts are limited on what and how these funds may be used.
STAKEHOLDER MEETINGS
The La Feria Independent School District will hold various stakeholder meetings to provide an opportunity to all the District’s stakeholders to learn more about this grant and provide feedback and input.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
TEA has an ESSER FAQ page to provide answers to frequently asked questions regarding ESSER funds. The ESSER FAQ will be updated regularly.