LM Aug 2020

2017 Leader of the Year by Tech & Learning at ISTE. He has also authored numerous articles and spoken to school district leaders about technology plans. One piece of advice he offers to school leaders is to ensure they are aware of emerging technologies, as well as their potential benefits to education in the 21st century. “Technology should be used to engage kids,” he said. “ We should be focused on communication, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity and computational thinking.” Access to technology became even more important during the pandemic as schools shifted to remote learning. Bunker Hill, located in Macoupin County where Internet access is spotty, created public drive-up Wi-fi homework hotspots with the help of a local telecommunications provider. “We created a robust network that anyone can access,” he said. “Unfortunately, I don’t know if the outlying areas have as many options. I hope it can improve as this universal access would remove one of the biggest barriers to digital equity.” Elevat g Dugan ... cont’d. HEROS/HEALS ... cont’d. state stabilization funds, which would also go to K–12. As this article by the Center for American Progress points out, the current response to K–12 funding has been “paltry” relative to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). This is in large part because ARRA provided state stabilization funding which helped avoid even greater cuts. If and when federal funds come into play, how those funds are provided will be an important discussion. Providing funding only through Title I will mean that states will have to cut from their funding formulas (with less than acceptable results as described in the article by the Urban Institute) and then, if federal funding is provided, some schools may be able close gaps caused by funding cuts—but probably not all of them. In Illinois, since the cuts are even and Title I is equitable, our low-income and minority schools may come out all right—but many middle-income schools could lose significant dollars. Only providing dollars through Title I will mean the impact on schools and students is likely to be less apparent and less clear across states. That does not mean

Smith ... cont’d. “It was very productive, and we found there was a great need for superintendents to know what their neighbors were doing,” Smith said. In addition, Smith created a Google Drive folder where superintendents could share documents about communications sent to families and staff, as well as reopening plans and other pertinent documents. The Zoom meetings were popular and eventually shifted to smaller, county-level meetings led by her peers that allowed for a more targeted conversation on the issues at hand. What made the effort successful was the desire of everyone in the Northwest Region to support each other through an unprecedented period. “I’ve really found that people are almost always willing to help,” she said. “Sometimes you just need some organization to help get it started.” it is the wrong to use Title I. It should be part of the solution. Just that we also need to stabilize funding to schools from the state. Most districts are spending far more money than normal trying to deal with the crisis. They are buying PPE, developing hybrid learning, providing social supports and just trying to survive. Parents are desperate for the help that schools can provide in this incredibly trying time and schools will need additional dollars to meet these needs. Using Title I, which both bills do, to address these additional needs makes sense. But if states are not stabilized, they will have to cut funding for schools. What the Urban Institute shows is that regardless of how funds are cut, it will be the wrong way. There may be some wealthy schools that can weather the storm, but few others will be able to. This is troubling. By not providing state stabilization funding, it will be very unclear which schools will lose more in state funds then will gain in federal funds. Only the HEROS Act provides both Title I supports and state stabilization dollars.

11 LM August 2020