Allen County Educational Service Center Superintendent Craig Kupferberg shares with Lima Rotarians how some COVID monies are being spent.
Dean Brown | The Lima News
LIMA — The Allen County Educational Service Center received money from the Ohio Department of Education and distributed it to the 10 schools and more than 5,000 students that it serves.
Extended learning and recovery funds were provided by the State of Ohio to the Allen County ESC in excess of $2 million dollars. The Allen County ESC had local schools develop mini-grant proposals to be used by the schools. The grants helped fund a variety of programs designed to help eliminate any deficit in learning caused by COVID and to extend student learning.
Craig Kupferberg, superintendent of the Allen County ESC, summarized the grant process, “In the fall of 2021, the Ohio Department of Education notified all ESCs that they had COVID dollars that they needed to get out to the public schools. The ODE wanted a local proposal on how the ESC could assist school districts in meeting a lot of their needs, extending the learning of students as well as recovering and bringing those students out of the pandemic.
“Our schools opened for 100% face-to-face learning in August of 2020. That’s the first any school in the state of Ohio could open after the governor shut everybody down in March. As it turns out, what they’re finding from research and studies now, is that was absolutely the best thing that you could do for students, not only academically, but for their mental health and well-being as well. Our task is really looking at extended learning because we don’t need in Allen County as much recovery work as you would in other places,” Kupferberg said.
The Allen County ESC asked for $11 million dollars. They got $2.1 million of the $75 million distributed to 51 different ESCs throughout Ohio; only five county ESCs received more money.
Amy Honigford, a Title One teacher from Allen East Elementary, talked about her program. The 95% Group is a program that works to fill all the gaps that students bring to kindergarten. The program pinpoints skill deficits and provides intervention lessons that enable teachers and tutors to efficiently provide effective small-group instruction.
Teachers and tutors are trained. Honigford submitted a budget of $3,284 and received it all to buy materials and pay tutors. There are 137 students in grades kindergarten through grade four receiving intervention in the 95% Group program.
Honigford said, “The growth is exciting to see already. Even though we just started in September, we’re already seeing positive effects.”
Time prohibited all programs from being represented at the Rotary meeting. There are many other noteworthy programs at local schools to assist students in all grades to extend learning beyond the basics.
Reach Dean Brown at 567-242-0409
