Coatesville school board reviews recommendations for use of remaining pandemic relief funds
What happened: The board will vote to spend the remaining $856,912 in federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief money at its Sept. 24 meeting, after hearing a list of purchase recommendations from Assistant Superintendent Anthony Rybarczyk.
: The district received $13.99 million in ESSER (pandemic relief) funding. The government stipulated that at least 20% of the money must be used to make up for learning loss due to the pandemic. Coatesville has used 60% of this money for learning loss, Rybarczyk said. The program ends in September, so the district must spend or contractually commit all money by the end of the month.
: Purchases Rybarczyk recommended include Hillyard scrubbers floor care machines for $104,000; a Verkada access control system for the high school campus for $406,290; stickers for sensory walks in each elementary and intermediate school building for students with sensory issues for $10,204; replacement treadmills and exercise bicycles for $158,552; a Practical Assessment Exploration System tool for special education students for $39,875; expansion of the TransMath curriculum to grades six through 12 for $48,851; Apple iPad charging carts for kindergarten through grade five for $34,027; and a 2024 Ford E-Transit 350 medium cargo van for band program transportation for $55,113.
Background checks: During the policy committee portion of the meeting, board member Liz Muirhead asked to add an item to a future agenda to discuss if and how teacher and board background checks are available to the public. She said this was in response to public comments during recent meetings alleging some teacher documentation may be falsified.
