How Federal Funds for Safe School Reopenings Would Pay Off

Money spent now to reopen schools would boost incomes of current K-12 students later, and the entire economy, for decades

Safe reopening of K-12 classrooms in the United States depends on several things, health experts and school officials say. Foremost, the growing pandemic needs to be reigned in, so there is less chance of spread in schools. But the coronavirus won’t be gone by fall, and it fact it’s likely to get worse, so experts say schools need to make significant changes to how they operate, and hire staff to handle new ways of educating and caring for kids.

But as I reported earlier this week, school districts simply do not have the funds to tackle the extensive mitigation efforts needed.

To recap the challenge, pre-K-12 schools across the country need somewhere between $117 billion and $245 billion, based on separate estimates from the American Federation of Teachers and the Council of Chief State School Officers. The money is needed for “instructional staff, distance learning, before- and after-school care, transportation, personal protective equipment, cleaning and health supplies, health staffing, custodial and cleaning staff, meeting children’s social and emotional needs and additional academic support for students.”

Because state tax revenues have plummeted along with the economy, budgets are being slashed, and most schools simply don’t have the money to do what the health experts say needs to be done. So educators are pleading for help from the federal government, a request that so far has been largely ignored. Adding to the misery educators are going through, today President Trump threatened to cut off existing federal aid to schools if they refuse to fully open.

Dangerous proposition

Opening schools without serious and costly mitigation measures to prevent outbreaks, would be dangerous for children (yes, children are not immune from severe Covid-19 effects and death). Teachers, support staff and parents would also be at greater risk of infection.

As new cases of the disease skyrocket across the nation, efforts to combat the pandemic are back to square one, and the…