(November 15, 2021) The Rochester City School District is pleased to announce that the final portion of the $87-million-dollar allocation in Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRSSA) Act funds has been approved by the New York State Education Department.
Superintendent Dr. Lesli Myers-Small said, “I want to thank our State Monitor Dr. Shelley Jallow for her partnership in working with our team for the past several months to finalize and approve this grant application. I am also grateful to the State Education Department for recognizing and addressing the fiscal needs of our District. This meaningful investment will go a long way in addressing social emotional, staffing, and health and safety needs of Rochester’s scholars and giving them a fair, sound, and equitable education.”
The RCSD applied for $87-million-dollars to support its own initiatives based on student need, stakeholder feedback, and the desire to improve existing planning processes. As a result, the District identified areas, such as student health and safety, reopening, COVID response, a resource planning upgrade, and high-quality teaching and learning for all.
With the approval of the $87-million-dollars, the District will apply funding in the following areas:
Social-Emotional, Mental Health, and Safety Supports:
- 52 new full-time COVID Response Paraprofessionals
- Expansion of Second Step social-emotional curriculum provision: curricular materials and related professional development
- Personal Protective Equipment supplies and materials
- Overtime pay for custodians to conduct deep cleanings of physical spaces
Academic Supports:
- Expansion of access to enrichment courses by converting 28 part-time teaching positions to full-time.
- 75 full-time building substitutes to ensure a dedicated, consistent substitute at specific school buildings
- Teacher hourly pay to support additional instructional time virtually for students in quarantine
The District’s application for $197-million-dollars in American Rescue Plan Act money is still under review by the New York State Education Department. If approved, the District would apply funding in the following areas:
Social-Emotional, Mental Health, and Safety Supports:
- 17.5 full-time additional school counselors
- 5 full-time additional ROC Restorative teachers on assignment
- 4 full-time bilingual additional teachers on assignment to support restorative practices
- 1 full-time TCOSE
- 3 full-time additional social workers
- 19 full-time additional school safety officers (sso's)
- 1 full-time coordinator of social-emotional learning
- 2 full-time social-emotional learning coaches
- 9 full-time additional, (varied teacher on assignment focused on provision of social-emotional learning, by school need and request)
- Provision of Districtwide therapeutic crisis and intervention training
- Provision of Districtwide Trauma, Illness and Grief (TIG) training
- 11 full-time intervention aides from Pathways to Peace
- 4 full-time additional help zone staff from Center for Youth
- Provision of professional learning focused on providing social-emotional supports to highest-need students
- .5 full-time community organizer
- 2 full-time bilingual counselors
Academic Supports:
- 7 full-time building substitutes to ensure a dedicated, consistent substitute at specific school buildings
- 11.9 full-time positions varied Intervention/teachers on assigment specific to school need and request
- 2 full-time paraprofessionals
- 1 full-time coordinator of Early College
- Varied additional supplemental programs to mitigate learning loss, including initiatives specific to meeting the needs of English Language Learners and Studnets with Disabilities
- Varied supports to diversify academic programs across the District
In December of 2020, the CRRSA Act was signed into law to provide $54.3-billion-dollars in relief funds to elementary and secondary schools across the nation.