DPI: ESSER II In-Person Hours Data Collection
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | March 29, 2021
From the Department of Public Instruction . . .
Friday, March 26, 2021
On February 10, the Joint Finance Committee adopted Motion #16 to approve the Department of Public Instruction’s (DPI’s) allocation plan for ESSER II funds under the CRRSA Act with one modification. Under that modification, $65,537,642 is allocated among 174 local education agencies (LEAs) that would otherwise receive less than $395 per pupil under the Title I-A formula and $100,000 LEA minimum, in proportion to each LEA’s share of the total number of in-person instructional hours provided in the 2020-21 school year.
DPI requested clarifications from the Joint Finance co-chairs on the definition of in-person instruction and how data would be collected. Based on those clarifications, we have developed a plan for this data collection under a method similar to the PI-1804 Summer School Report. Eligible LEAs will be provided a workbook to compile their hours of in-person instruction by class, using an average daily in-person attendance. Each LEA will compile and report a single total number of in-person hours to DPI. A list of the affected LEAs is available in the Excel workbook on ESSER II allocations.
For this collection, in-person instructional hours are defined as hours in which pupils are together in the same physical location, being taught by a licensed teacher who is in the same location. Hours of virtual or other remote instruction may not be counted under any circumstance, including but not limited to:
- Virtual charter schools
- Simultaneous virtual participation in classroom instruction (the pupils participating virtually may not be counted, but those in the classroom with the teacher are counted)
- Splitting pupils among two classrooms, with the second classroom having an aide present and a live screencast of the teacher in the first classroom (hours for pupils in the first classroom, where the teacher is present, may be counted)
- Hybrid models with virtual days (only the in-person days may be counted)
- Temporary closure due to local public health orders, active COVID-19 cases, quarantines, or similar circumstances
The SFS Team is developing an Excel workbook, FAQ, and other guidance on this data collection. More information, including a timeframe for the data collection itself, will be released as soon as it is available.
For questions about this information, contact Daniel Bush (608) 266-6968, Roger Kordus (608) 267-3752
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Study: Wisconsin Schools Could Save With ETF-Style Health Plan
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | March 25, 2021
From WisPolitics…
Wisconsin’s school districts could save up to $5,000 a year per employee by pooling health care resources, a new think tank study says.
Study author and former Deputy Insurance Commissioner J.P. Wieske, now with Horizon Government Affairs, said if schools teamed up on health resources in a model similar to the state’s Employee Trust Funds health plan, districts could save more than $500 million in the aggregate.
He noted most schools developed their current health plans based on regulations from 2011 Wisconsin Act 10 meant to expand insurance options. And while language in the law did benefit some districts, according to Wieske, costs also have huge differences between districts in ways that can’t be attributed to the health plans themselves.
“Even though many school districts were able to take advantage of the flexibility of Act 10, we found that what school districts paid for health insurance varied widely,” Wieske said, noting costs ranged from $450 per month all the way to $1,400 for single coverage. “The savings aren’t magic.”
The study argues the larger risk pool through an ETF-like program would help lower costs by spreading risk and cutting back on administration.
According to the report, school districts on average spend over $21,000 a year on family health policies, with 21 districts having family policy deductibles $10,000 or higher. It said the high costs in part factor in because school employees tend to be older on average than private-sector employees.
A spokesperson for the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the state’s leading teacher’s union, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
See the plan here.
See the release here.
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LFB Memo on Evers’ Major School Finance Proposals
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | March 25, 2021
The Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) has produced a memo estimating the effects on school districts of the major K-12 school finance provisions of Governor Evers’ proposed 2021-23 state budget.
This information is extremely important to our ongoing advocacy efforts on the 2021-23 State Budget.
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LFB Estimate Finds Wisconsin Governments, Educational Institutions in Line for $8.7 Billion from Latest Stimulus Bill
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | March 25, 2021
From WisPolitics.com …
Wisconsin’s state and local governments, along with its educational institutions, could receive $8.7 billion from the latest federal COVID-19 stimulus bill, according to an estimate from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.
A new LFB memo summarized the package’s wide-ranging impact on programs from child abuse prevention grants to aid for the humanities. But it didn’t include a summary of the overall pot of money the state could receive.
LFB put together the $8.7 billion total at the request of WisPolitics.com, though Director Bob Lang stressed it was an estimate and comes with some caveats. For example, the state is in line for $188.7 million from a capital projects fund. But it would first have to apply for the money through a process the U.S. Department of Treasury has nearly two months to set up.
The estimate doesn’t include the stimulus checks that residents received as part of the latest package, nor the $1 billion sweetener the package includes for states like Wisconsin if they expand Medicaid through the Affordable Care Act. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, has already ruled out the move.
The biggest pots of money include: $3.2 billion for the state; $2.3 billion for counties and municipalities; $1.5 billion for public K-12 schools; and $560 million for Wisconsin colleges and universities.
Some of the highlights include:
*Previous estimates had detailed the $2.3 billion that Wisconsin municipalities and counties will receive. That includes $405.7 million for the city of Milwaukee and $183.4 million for the county. The LFB memo notes the COVID bill includes language stating aid states receive directly can’t be used to reduce taxes. But there are no similar restrictions on the money that locals will receive.
The memo includes a breakdown on the aid hundreds of Wisconsin villages, towns and cities will receive.
*The Department of Public Instruction will have to submit to the Joint Finance Committee a plan for the influx of federal aid for K-12 schools. Still, the bulk of that money will be divided up using a federal formula based on poverty, and JFC won’t be able to change that. A similar approach was used for the last round of federal COVID aid, and Milwaukee Public Schools was the biggest recipient of that money.
Of the $686.1 million included in the December package President Trump signed, $617.5 million was distributed to districts and independent charter schools based on the formula that accounts for the number of low-income students in each district.
Milwaukee was to receive $225.2 million of the pot of $686.1 million with JFC using $65 million of the federal funds to reward districts that offer in-person instruction.
*Private K-12 schools are in line for an estimated $67.1 million.
*The American Council on Education has done an estimate on how the $560 million would be divided up among Wisconsin colleges and universities. That includes $275 million for UW System institutions; $170 million for Wisconsin Technical Colleges; and $115 million for private, nonprofit colleges.
That money can be used to defray costs associated with the virus, including lost revenue and technology costs for going to distance learning. Almost half of the money has to go to financial aid grants to students.
Other than a small share of the money, at least half of it has to go to financial aid grants to students.
*The $188.7 million the state could receive from the capital fund is meant to cover projects that “directly enable work, education, and health monitoring, including remote options, in response to the coronavirus pandemic.”
Under the bill, the Treasury Department has to set up a process for states to apply for the money, which would have to be used by Dec. 31, 2024.
The LFB memo notes state law requires capital projects with a cost of more than $1 million to be enumerated by the Legislature, regardless of the funding source. Also, no agency can enter into a contract exceeding $300,000 for a project without approval from the State Building Commission.
See the LFB memo here.
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LFB Summary of Governor Evers Executive Budget Now Available
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | March 17, 2021
The Legislative Fiscal Bureau summary of Governor Evers 2021-23 budget recommendations is now available. Check it out here.
See the Public Instruction agency summary here.
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