KDSN RADIO News
ISEA calls for including teachers in discussions over spending $770M in federal funds
(Radio Iowa) - The state teachers union is calling on superintendents and school boards to include teachers and other school staff in discussions about how districts plan to use the latest batch of $770 million in federal pandemic relief. State law limits teacher contract negotiations to a discussion of salaries, but ISEA president Mike Beranek says U.S. Department of Education guidelines require all school employees to be engaged in meaningful consultation in how federal funds approved in March are used.
"There is no ambiguity about this direction and we want to want to make it perfectly clear that Iowa's educators who bravely and consistently worked on the frontlines of this pandemic, who understand first hand what their students need will be at the table when the ideas for use are discussed and the final decisions are made."
Allison Grier, a Spanish teacher at Newton High School, says this new batch of federal funds can be used in creative ways to address student needs and learning loss.
"These funds offer a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for innovation and for remediation," she says.
Kelly McMahon, a kindergarten teacher at Hoover Elementary in Cedar Rapids, says the money can help address barriers to student success.
"This historic influx of money in our school communities can be a game-changer for so many students, families and educators -- if done right," she says. "Now more than ever educators, parents, administrators and other stakeholders absolutely must be at the table when discussions and decisions are being made about these funds. We can rise above the effects of this pandemic in ways we've never dreamed of."
The latest round of pandemic relief funds from the federal government can be used to do things like hire new teachers, mental health counselors and school nurses or to finance summer school programs.
