LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Jefferson County Public Schools Superintendent Marty Pollio was one of 63 superintendents and education leaders who signed a letter this week urging Congress "in the strongest possible terms" for more than $200 billion in COVID-19 relief funding.
The letter from the Council of the Great City Schools to congressional leaders, dated Tuesday, says the financial impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic could pose an "educational catastrophe" as many urban districts expect revenue losses between 15 percent and 25 percent.
The council wants Congress to earmark $175 billion for the Education Stabilization Fund, $13 billion for special education, $12 billion in additional Title I funding and $2 billion for telecommunications and internet support. The group also wants public schools to receive emergency infrastructure money, though it does not include an amount sought.
The group predicts that revenue shortfalls will prompt urban districts to lay off about 275,000 educators at a time when many students will enter the 2020-21 school year with "substantial unfinished learning" as schools throughout the country ceased in-person instruction to slow the spread of COVID-19.
"These budget cuts will mean teaching staff will be laid off, class sizes will balloon, and remaining teaching staff will likely be redeployed into classes and subjects that they may not be used to teaching -- all at a time when they will be asked to address unprecedented unfinished learning from the last school year," the Council of the Great City Schools wrote.
Pollio said the letter sends "a clear message" from superintendents on their concerns of how the COVID-19 pandemic will impact student achievement, particularly for those who lack access to digital resources.
Additional funding would help districts shrink the digital divide in their communities and provide academic interventions to students who fall behind during distance learning, he said.
JCPS doesn't face the same financial plight as other school districts thanks to steps taken by state policymakers in response to COVID-19, Pollio said when asked about the projected revenue shortfalls included in the letter. The General Assembly passed a one-year budget that did not cut the state's share of education funding, among other steps taken to provide relief for school districts during the pandemic.
Kentucky's largest district is one of the only districts in the state to collect occupational taxes, and Pollio said that's one area of concern during the economic slowdown.
"We're still evaluating what that financial impact will be, and we'll have a better sense of that as we get a month into this," he said.
The council's warning of teacher layoffs or furloughs without federal relief hasn't been discussed by JCPS leaders, according to Pollio.
"I think when we forecast the potential impact that could be there, we definitely see that in future budgets there is concern that it could impact JCPS in the way that it is impacting other large districts right now," Pollio said.
The $13.5 billion in the initial COVID-19 stimulus package provided "a critical lifeline for public education," but the Council of the Great City Schools cautioned that "dark clouds are forming on the educational horizon that will spell disaster if Congress does not intervene.
"Significant revenue shortfalls are looming for local school districts that will exacerbate the disruption students have already faced," the group wrote.
"With additional federal funds, America's public schools will be able to add summer school, expand the school day after reopening in the fall, retain and stabilize our teaching force, address the needs of our most vulnerable students, narrow the digital divide, and have a fighting chance at salvaging the futures of millions of young people," the council added.
The substantial funding request from urban school leaders comes as the Senate prepares to resume work Monday. Democratic leaders in the House scrapped their plans to return to the Washington, D.C., next week based on guidance from the Capitol's attending physician, according to reports.
Lawmakers are expected to continue debating federal relief packages in response to COVID-19.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's office noted that the initial stimulus bill provided $193.2 million to Kentucky districts and that schools here are eligible for another $43.8 million, but whether he supports the more than $200 billion sought by the Council of the Great City Schools remains unclear.
The Kentucky Republican was among congressional leaders who received the council's letter Tuesday.
"Work continues to provide emergency relief [to] Kentucky and our country during this pandemic," McConnell spokesman Robert Steurer said.
Rep. John Yarmuth, a Louisville Democrat who chairs the House Budget Committee, said he "wholeheartedly" supports the funding request, saying the educational disruption caused by COVID-19 "is something we must address as immediately as possible and on an ongoing basis."
"Our school teachers and administrators are doing all they can right now to shift resources to feeding students and adapting to providing distance learning opportunities that can best replicate the classroom instruction students are used to -- all while dealing with the personal disruptions to their lives and health and safety that we're all experiencing," Yarmuth said in a statement.
"I'll continue to push for strong funding for our states, cities, and schools throughout this process, and will do all that I can to make our education system whole again."
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