ARP is a part of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds. This act provides federal funds through the Georgia Department of Education to local educational agencies and public schools to provide the financial resources to appropriately respond to the global coronavirus pandemic. The funds are used to support COVID-19 prevention and mitigation strategies, to improve the learning and academic success of students and to provide interventions for the academic, social, emotional, and mental health of students.

Under ARP, local educational agencies (LEAs) are required to provide at least 20 percent of funds toward evidence-based activities to address learning loss as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Dalton Public Schools plan allocates most of its federal ARP funds toward instructional personnel and activities to improve student success. These efforts that address the academic needs of at-risk students are implemented throughout the school day, in after school tutoring programs and summer school activities. The school district also uses a substantial amount of its ARP federal funds for educational technology which includes student devices, instructional software, and connectivity.

Dalton Public Schools’ ARP plan includes the addition of social workers, counselor, and psychologists to address the social, emotional, and mental health of students. The school district is using ARP funds for the continuity of services to maintain existing staffing levels at the schools and central office. The federal funds will cover the cost of retention supplements for educators.

Dalton Public Schools has developed its ARP plan in conjunction with previous ESSER allocations known as the Coronavirus, Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.  The school district is using CARES funds for periodic microbial disinfecting throughout school buildings, student and adult masks, hand sanitizer, supplemental pay for nurses, and employing contact tracers.  The local ARP fund plan is in alignment with the school district’s comprehensive needs assessment as well as the board of education’s strategic plan initiatives.

These services and use of the ARP federal funds must be developed with public input. The school district has public hearings on the annual budget every year in May and June. Additionally, the Board of Education invites public comment during their monthly meetings.  Members of the public who are interested in gaining greater understanding of the details of the ARP funds, are invited to contact the administrators listed below.

For more information about ESSER funding, please visit the Georgia Department of Education Insights website here.   

Leslie Dixon
Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Operations
Email Leslie Dixon
(706) 876-4026