Shelby County schools receiving GEER funding

Two Shelby County schools are among the recipients of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) fund.

Shelbyville Central Schools will receive $166,560 while Shelby Eastern Schools will receive $30,000 from the fund, which is designed to improve connectivity and increase device availability for both students and teachers, Gov. Eric Holcomb announced in a press release.

“Indiana’s students, parents and teachers have worked hard to adapt to the challenges COVID-19 has brought to education,” Holcomb said in the release. “These emergency funds will enable Hoosier students to be more successful with remote learning. Some families will now worry less about internet connectivity, more students will have access to the technology needed at home, and more educators will have the necessary devices to teach remotely.”

The grants will fund a minimum of 68,689 student devices, almost 2,900 teacher devices and more than 85,800 connectivity solutions, according to the information provided by the school districts that applied.

The Federal CARES Act established GEER.

According to the press release, applicants submitted plans that included:

The purchase of student devices, including Chormebooks and iPads

New or upgraded laptops, MacBooks, Chromebooks and iPads for teachers

And mi-fi devices with corresponding subscription plans for families who lack reliable internet connectivity.

The grants were awarded to 184 traditional school corporations representing 1,366 schools, 64 public charter schools and 124 non-public schools. Almost 674,500 students are enrolled in the schools that are receiving the grants.

An additional 12 institutions of higher learning, including Indiana University, Purdue University and Ivy Tech Community College, will receive more than $11 million combined.