Cannon County Schools Recognized for ESSER Investments that Benefit Students
NASHVILLE: Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced the 68 districts that have received statewide recognition as best for all districts for significantly investing federal COVID-19 stimulus funding to drive student achievement and improving academic outcomes. The department is celebrating these districts today for #BestforAllDay through a statewide live stream event from 9 AM – 10:30 AM CST, accessible here.
Best for all districts will receive financial, operational, celebratory, and resource benefits in appreciation for districts’ planned investments to spend their share of the $3.58 billion in federal COVID-19 relief and stimulus funding directly on services, resources and supports that will help students achieve academically. Gov. Bill Lee announced a day of recognition in honor of best for all districts on Fri., Feb. 11, 2022. Each best for all district was awarded grant funds from the department’s ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund) funds, with the full grant funding for best for all districts totaling more than $15 million.
Access the full list of best for all districts here and the list of individual grant allocations here.
“Tennessee’s ‘Best For All’ districts have gone above and beyond to invest strategically in student achievement, address learning loss, and drive positive outcomes,” Lee said. “As we continue to prioritize students, I commend each of these high-performing districts for their hard work and thank our teachers and administrators for their commitment to providing high-quality education across Tennessee.”
“Tennessee’s Best for All districts are truly deserving of this recognition for their strong commitment to strategically investing in their students at a time when there were literally billions of other opportunities to spend,” said Commissioner Penny Schwinn. “Our kids deserve the best possible education we can provide them, and I am proud to honor our Best for All districts for their leadership in putting a clear focus on academic achievement to help them succeed.”
Beginning in 2020, Congress responded to the global COVID-19 health pandemic by passing several pieces of legislation, and as a result Tennessee is benefiting from over $4.5 billion for K-12 education to be spent between spring 2020 and fall 2024. Through three rounds of funding referred to as ESSER 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 funds, over $3.58 billion will flow directly to local school districts to decide how to spend. Cannon County Schools will receive $175,000 to be used flexibly by the district in accordance with allowable expenses for all other district ESSER funds, with the exclusion of infrastructure expenses.
The department understands the importance of rewarding investments in mission-critical initiatives that are most likely to benefit students. Best for All districts are those entities that have strategically planned for and invested in ways that are likely to accelerate student achievement. To qualify for the Best for All recognition program, a district must have planned to spend an amount equal to or more than 50% of its ESSER 3.0 award amount on strategies to raise student academic achievement, as well as opted to participate in the state’s high-dosage, low-ratio tutoring program, TN ALL Corps.
Cannon County Schools ESSER/Learning Loss supervisor, Stephanie Alexander said, “It is a great honor to be recognized by the Tennessee Department of Education for Cannon County Schools’ strategic investments of federal relief funding to directly improve student outcomes. We are excited about the opportunity to accelerate student achievement.”
Cannon County Director of Schools, William Freddy Curtis said, “This is a tremendous honor and privilege for our school district to be recognized as a Best For All’ district and receive additional funding that can go toward additional measures to address learning loss and student acceleration of learning. The timing is great as we move forward with restructuring and modernization in our Cannon County schools. This funding will further support the district’s VISION, ‘To Actively Engage in Excellence EVERY Day in EVERY Way!’ through our MISSION, ‘To Create a Unified Environment That Will Provide Opportunities for ALL Students to Succeed and Reach Their Full Potential.’ These funds and designation are specifically rewarding investments in mission-critical initiatives that are most likely to benefit students.”
For Tennessee Department of Education media inquiries, contact Edu.MediaInquiries@tn.gov.
For local media inquiries, please contact William Freddy Curtis, Director of Cannon County Schools, at (629) 201-4801, ext. 10101, or at williamf.curtis@ccstn.net for local Cannon County Schools information.