Dear Partner in School Emergency Recovery,

Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced the availability of new Federal assistance for schools, school districts, and students who were impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria and the 2017 California wildfires. The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 authorizes an additional $2.7 billion to support K-12 school districts and schools as well as institutions of higher education (IHEs) with post-emergency recovery. (Read the full press release.) The following programs will be funded through the new Federal assistance announced:

(1) Immediate Aid to Restart School Operations (Restart)

Under this program, the Department is authorized to award funds to eligible State educational agencies (SEAs), including those of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas and U.S. Virgin Islands. These SEAs, in turn, will provide assistance or services to local educational agencies (LEAs), including charter schools, and private schools to help defray expenses related to the restart of operations in, the reopening of, and the re-enrollment of students in elementary and secondary schools that serve an area affected by a covered disaster or emergency.

(2) Emergency Impact Aid for Displaced Students

Under this program, the Department will award Emergency Impact Aid funding to SEAs, which, in turn, will provide assistance to LEAs for the cost of educating students enrolled in public schools, including charter schools, and private schools, who were displaced by the hurricanes during the school year 2017-2018 and California wildfires in 2017.

Congress appropriated a combined amount of approximately $2.5 billion for both the Restart and Emergency Impact Aid for Displaced Student programs. The amounts awarded under each program will be based on demand and specific data received from eligible applicants.

(3) Assistance for Homeless Children and Youth

Congress appropriated $25 million for additional grants to SEAs for LEAs to address the needs of homeless students displaced by the covered disasters and emergencies. The Department anticipates using data on displaced public school students collected under the Emergency Impact Aid program to make allocations to SEAs under the Assistance for Homeless Children and Youths program. SEAs will award subgrants to LEAs on the basis of demonstrated need. LEAs must use the funds awarded under this program to support activities that are allowable under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.

(4) Emergency Assistance to Institutions of Higher Education

Congress appropriated $100 million for this program, which will provide emergency assistance to IHEs and their students in areas directly affected by the covered disasters or emergencies, for activities authorized under the Higher Education Act of 1965.

(5) Defraying Costs of Enrolling Displaced Students in Higher Education

Congress appropriated $75 million for this program, which will provide payments to IHEs to help defray the unexpected expenses associated with enrolling displaced students from IHEs directly affected by a covered disaster or emergency, in accordance with criteria to be established and made publicly available. Stay tuned for additional information from the U.S. Department of Education, including the application packages and technical assistance, on its "Disaster Relief" webpage at https://www.ed.gov/disasterrelief.

For additional information on the programs for K-12 schools and school districts, please contact David Esquith, Director, Office of Safe and Healthy Students, at David.Esquith@ed.gov. For additional information on the programs for IHEs, please contact Adam Kissel, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Higher Education Programs, Office of Postsecondary Education, at Adam.Kissel@ed.gov.