Newly Released Interim Guides Designed to Help Urban Districts Assess Progress of ARP Investments -- THE Journal

Breaking News

Newly Released Interim Guides Designed to Help Urban Districts Assess Progress of ARP Investments

By Kristal Kuykendall
08/10/22

The Council of Great City Schools has released a set of guides tailored to each function of school leadership to help urban school districts evaluate their American Rescue Plan investments and implementations one year in, the nonprofit said in a news release.

Each of the eight Interim Progress Assessment Guides is specifically designed for a different district leadership function; the release comes 14 months after the Council published its Investing American Rescue Plan Funds Strategically and Effectively guide that aimed to help districts get the most out of their federal relief funds.

One year into districts’ relief and recovery efforts, education leaders should be assessing their progress, said Council Executive Director Ray Hart.

“These relief funds come with intense public scrutiny over the ways we choose to invest our time and resources,” Hart said. “One year later, we need to step back and make sure we are on the right track. We need to talk to our teams, talk to our peers. We need to refine our work where needed, and recommit ourselves, if necessary, to the overarching goals of supporting our most vulnerable students and advancing educational excellence and equity.”

The new assessment guides for public education leaders offer a framework for the assessment process, the nonprofit said; each is designed to help district leaders and staff assess their investments or activities in a specific area. The Council encouraged district leaders to use the Interim Progress Assessment guides as a checklist to review their current strategy.

Following are the new interim progress assessment guides and the target audience for each:

Interim Progress Assessment: Investing in Instructional Resources and Student Support Services, designed for chief academic officers and instructional leaders across subject areas, as well as ELL leaders, special education leaders, equity teams, technology and procurement teams, and teachers and support staff
Interim Progress Assessment: Investing in Facilities, Operations, and Equipment, designed for chief operating officers and teams involved in facilities, operations, and equipment decisions and planning
Interim Progress Assessment: Investing in Information Technology, designed for IT leaders and their teams
Interim Progress Assessment: Investing in Leadership and Human Capital Management, designed for human resources leaders and their teams
Interim Progress Research, Evaluation, and Assessment Guidance, designed for researchers
Interim Progress Assessment: School Board Monitoring of the Use of ARP Funds, designed for school board members
Interim Progress Assessment: Managing and Evaluating the Use of Federal Relief Aid, designed for school district financial officers
Interim Progress Assessment: Public Engagement and Communications Planning, designed for district communications leaders

After the American Rescue Plan was enacted, the Council sought input from urban education leaders and support staff across the country to help develop guidance for urban schools on how best to use the ARP funds to “protect student health and safety, address student learning needs and mental health services, and to maintain and upgrade school facilities,” the nonprofit said.

The guides are available for download on the Council's website.

About the Author

Kristal Kuykendall is editor, 1105 Media Education Group. She can be reached at [email protected].

E-Mail this page

Printable Format

Featured

Why Screen Time Limits Are Not the Answer

At a fundamental level, screen time policies and laws aim to address academic achievement by balancing digital instruction with traditional teaching methods. But they do not tackle how devices are used.
When Cyber Attacks Disrupt Learning, Recovery Matters More than Ever

As schools become more dependent on digital platforms for instruction, grading, student services, and family communication, resilience depends not only on preventing attacks, but on how quickly leaders can restore trusted data, recover essential services, and keep disruptions from cascading across the school community.
Open Secure AI Alliance Moving Under Linux Foundation

Governance of the Open Secure AI Alliance has moved to the Linux Foundation, giving the initiative what the organizations describe as a neutral home for developing open source tools, shared standards and defensive practices. The Alliance was launched by NVIDIA in July to develop open security technologies for AI systems and agents.
What Is the Education Freedom Tax Credit and How Will It Work?

The federal Education Freedom Tax Credit (EFTC) is a new source of funding for education that could benefit 90% of students in states that have opted in to the program. However, some confusion and misconceptions exist surrounding details of the program, including which programs may qualify, how parents can apply for scholarships, and how public school students can benefit.