• ESSER I, ESSER II, and ESSER III

    In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Department of Education has released three grants for which local education agencies (LEAs) can apply through the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. These grants, known as ESSER I, ESSER II, and ESSER III, were authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act); the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSA); and the American Rescue Plan (ARP).

    CARES ACT: ESSER I

    On March 27, 2020, Congress set aside approximately $13.2 billion of the $30.75 billion allotted to the Education Stabilization Fund through the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act for the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) Fund. The Department awarded these grants ¬to state educational agencies (SEAs) for the purpose of providing local educational agencies (LEAs), including charter schools that are LEAs, with emergency relief funds to address the impact that COVID-19 has had, and continues to have, on elementary and secondary schools across the Nation. ESSER Fund awards to SEAs are in the same proportion as each state receiving funds under Part A of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, in the fiscal year 2019. For more information on ESSER awards, please visit the Award Resources page. ESSER I funds can be used to cover expenses incurred from March 13, 2020, through September 30, 2022.

    CRRSA: ESSER II

    The Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act, 2021, was signed into law on December 27, 2020, and provided an additional $54.3 billion for the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER II) Fund. ESSER II Fund awards to SEAs are in the same proportion as each state receiving funds under Part A of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, in the fiscal year 2020. For more information on ESSER awards, please visit the  Award Resources page. ESSER II funds can be used to cover expenses incurred from March 13, 2020, through September 30, 2023.

    ARP: ESSER III

    On Thursday, March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act was signed into law. It was an unprecedented $1.9 trillion package of assistance measures, including $122 billion for the ARP Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) Fund. Funds are provided to SEAs and LEAs to help safely reopen and sustain the same operation of schools and address the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the Nation’s students. ARP ESSER Fund awards to SEAs are in the same proportion as each state receiving funds under Part A of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, in the fiscal year 2020. For more information on ESSER awards, please visit the  Award Resources page. ESSER III funds can be used to cover expenses incurred from March 13, 2020, through September 30, 2024.

    ESSER funds will allow school systems to take additional steps to safely reopen schools for in-person instruction and keep them open, and to address the disruptions to teaching and learning resulting from the pandemic. This includes using funds to enact appropriate measures to help schools to invest in mitigation strategies consistent with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Operational Strategy for K-12 Schools to the greatest extent practicable; address the many impacts of COVID-19 on students, including from interrupted instruction; implement strategies to meet students’ social, emotional, mental health, and academic needs; offer crucial summer, after-school, and other extended learning and enrichment programs; support early childhood education; invest in staff capacity; and avoid devastating layoffs at this critical moment, ensuring that all students have access to teachers, counselors, and other school personnel to support their needs.

    Sampson County Schools' ESSER III Use of Funds Plan is posted here.