SPRINGFIELD… State Representative Mike Marron (R-Fithian) sponsored Senate Bill 1646 after receiving some phone calls on this subject from several Superintendents in the 104th District.
Rep. Marron said, “The schools have been teaching virtually due to the pandemic, and we are now at the point of safely having the children back into the classroom. However, many students, especially in economically challenged neighborhoods, need special attention and in-person instruction to bring them up to the level they need to be.”
“The parents are requesting summer education, school districts want summer school, and teachers would like to teach summer school, so this idea would allow school districts to collect federal stimulus money to pay for summer school,” said Rep. Marron.
Rep. Marron said, “SB 1646 adds an exception provision allowing the use of federal stimulus money to pay for summer education in 2021 and next summer in 2022. Currently, we cannot use federal dollars for summer schooling, so this exception provides a brief window specifically helping students succeed due to the pandemic interruption of their education.”
“There are several schools in my district and across the state that have many technology and economic resource issues that may have affected some student’s ability to e-learn throughout the last 14 months. This bill will ensure that every school district has the resources needed to provide an opportunity for every one of our students to catch up,” said Rep. Marron.
SB 1646 passed the House 110-5-0 with an amendment from Rep. Marron and heads over to the Senate for concurrence.