Reopening hurdles linger for schools, despite rescue funding

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The latest federal coronavirus relief package includes $81 billion that began flowing to states this week with the goal of helping schools reopen quickly — with one obstacle being that many of the districts’ problems can’t be solved by money.

Many parents want to keep their children home. Teachers have pushed back at reopening plans. And some districts say state guidelines on social distancing keep them from bringing all students back at once.

The money is welcome assistance for districts that have had to spend enormous sums on ventilation systems, laptops and protective equipment. With the end of the academic year approaching quickly, however, many are looking ahead to how to best spend the new money next fall.

For some districts that have yet to bring large number of students back to classrooms, no amount of money can help in the near term.

The Hillsboro School District, one of Oregon's largest, plans to begin introducing limited in-person learning for some students this month but cannot bring all students back full time because of guidelines on issues such as social distancing and bus transportation, said Beth Graser, a district spokesperson.

“There simply aren’t people to hire to drive the buses we have, much less the fact that we would need to go through a purchasing process to secure additional buses if we were to increase our fleet to the point where we could feasibly overcome the transportation constraints,” Graser wrote in an email.

The money released this week is part of $122 billion included for K-12 schools in the $1.9 trillion virus relief bill. Schools are strategizing over how to use the money over the next couple years to undo the pandemic's damage to the pace of learning and students’ mental well-being.

Nearly half of U.S. elementary schools were open for...