State announces grants for schools
Norwich is the top area recipient in new round of Coronavirus Relief Funds
School districts throughout the state received grants Friday totaling $130 million — Norwich was the region’s top recipient, with more than $6.3 million — to pay for coronavirus-related cleaning supplies, academic supports, transportation and personnel support.
New London’s school district is slated to receive $1,451,888, according to a spreadsheet listing totals for each district and various categories of funding. Groton Public Schools will receive $1,248,743.
Gov. Ned Lamont announced on Aug. 6 that $160 million in Coronavirus Relief Funds would be provided to assist with the reopening of schools. He assigned the state Department of Education the task of determining areas of greatest funding needs and developing an application process for the new funding.
Norwich is slated to receive $6,321,410, the third-highest total in the state, behind only Hartford and Norwalk. In spring, Norwich received $1.9 million federal Title 1 coronavirus relief funding.
Norwich Free Academy is listed for $1,174,779 in Friday’s state grant announcement, and the Integrated Day Charter School in Norwich will receive $190,850.
Norwich Superintendent Kristen Stringfellow was grateful and elated Friday at the grant award. Last week, she released estimates that put the cost of reopening schools using a hybrid model of in-person and remote learning at more than $8 million, including academic costs, student supports, cleaning supplies, technology and transportation costs.
She said the state grant award was based on Norwich’s estimates to reopen schools safely and the state will require that the money be encumbered by Dec. 31.
Norwich Mayor Peter Nystrom credited and praised Stringfellow for her attention to detail, documentation and articulation of Norwich’s needs that led to the state grant award.
According to the state spreadsheet, $4.1 million of the Norwich grant will be for personnel-related academic supports, $1.6 million for cleaning, personal protective equipment, or PPE, and health and safety supplies, and $217,000 will be for transportation.
Most of NFA’s $1.1 million total was divided into academic support, $595,840, and cleaning, PPE and health and safety, $500,000. NFA spokesman Michael O’Farrell said the grant was “welcomed for sure,” and the academy is looking into whether the personnel portion of the grant can be used to hire additional substitute teachers NFA will need and nursing staff to help with isolation rooms if students or staff members test positive for COVID-19.
Rob Funk, executive director of finance for New London
Public Schools, said the state grant award will supplement the $1.9 million federal coronavirus funds the district received in spring, and is designated for similar types of expenses.
“The addition of this new state funding will put us in a better place to address some of these future costs,” Funk said, adding that the $1.45 million is “in the ballpark” of what New London expected in the new grant.
Funk said many future costs cannot be accurately estimated yet, because of uncertainty around what the final enrollment will be, how many employees will use COVID-19-related leave, and possible future
changes directed by the state based on statewide increases or decreases in the rate of infection.
In Groton, $893,759 of the district’s $1.2 million grant award was listed for personnel-related academic costs, with another $97,328 for student supports and $71,452 for transportation.
Preston Superintendent Roy Seitsinger said Friday’s announcement of the district’s award of $94,739 did not come with specific instructions, so he will hold off on plans to spend the money until receiving confirmation of the funding and the eligible costs.
“We understand that there will be an application process similar to others we have used in the past to access the funds,” he said. “We will not make any plans related to the funds until we are sure that we are receiving the amount noted in the spreadsheet.”