Join today at 10PT / 1 ET to see why our slides include the words "bloodletting" and "hangover." (Also, who said ed finance was boring?)

In assembling our ESSER spending dashboard, we sometimes stumble across some more curious tidbits. Katie Silberstein noticed this: A few districts in different states appear to have declined ESSER3 funds. One district in Missouri said no thanks to over $8M.

Seeing a lot of this around the country: Districts adding staff while losing students. Here's Seattle where a strike is likely to start tomorrow:

Wondering who all the extra staff are in Seattle Public Schools? The first column shows change in FTE by type up to last school year. The second column is proposed (budgeted) FTE changes from last year to this year.

Four financial practices that emerged during the pandemic that Marguerite Roza & Katie Silberstein hope will last: the74million.org/article/financ…

When school districts break out of deeply ingrained expenditure habits, it’s a big deal. And during the pandemic, many of them did just that. Here are four financial practices we hope will stick, via Marguerite Roza & Katie Silberstein The 74. the74million.org/article/financ…

Worried that districts aren't spending ESSER fast enough? Recent data show districts have picked up the pace. The average district is now on track to spend it down by Sept '24 deadline.

A regular reminder there's a lot of data in our ESSER tracker. Look up your district here: edunomicslab.org/esser-spending/ Here's some of what we're finding nationally:

Here's recent #s on how much ESSER spent: As of 12/31/22 total ESSER(1,2 &3) spent=$79B (43% of $184B). (Spent, not obligated) ESSER3 spent=$31B of $119B ESSER2 spent=$35B of $53B ESSER1 spent=$12.7B of $12.8 Thx Katie Silberstein for adding up states on covid-relief-data.ed.gov

Big winners when it comes to ESSER funds: Labor & vendors. Katie Silberstein & Marguerite Roza take stock of how districts have spent #ESSER 3 funds so far. Education Next. educationnext.org/the-massive-es…

AZ has a new portal up with interesting ESSER data! Unfortunately it's only as recent as June 2022. We're trying to get the state's complete data file to make available on our dashboard.

Looking for your district's #ESSER spending? We're constantly updating Edunomics Lab's dashboard w the latest data (publicly available or provided by SEAs). But: can't find for Maine & no response to direct requests. Help? ME Dept of Education Marcus Mrowka CCSSO edunomicslab.org/esser-spending/

School districts have been staffing up as enrollment has been falling. With ESSER ending, the labor market is about to flip. Katie Silberstein and I warn that there will be fewer jobs as districts begin to rightsize. the74million.org/article/educat…

⏰Districts now have more staff than ever. And fewer students. What happens next? Join us Thurs at 12pm ET for a 30-minute webinar. We’ll share trends we’re seeing in states & districts, and discuss options for school systems to address challenges ahead. register.gotowebinar.com/register/32585…

School finance is at an inflection point. The #ESSER fiscal cliff is coming. And equity – in resources, staffing, and learning opportunity – hangs in the balance. New analysis by @margueriteroza & Katie Silberstein Brookings Brown Center.  brookings.edu/articles/the-e…