An Opportunity to Invest in the Educator Workforce

State and local education agencies have been provided $176.3 billion of funding through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER II and ESSER III), which is a one-time funding opportunity to strengthen and support the educator workforce so that educator shortages do not continue to plague our nation’s schools. In a recent letter to schools and districts Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona recommended using American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) funds to implement short and long-term strategies to address educator shortages. This brief is intended to help state education agencies and local education agencies strategically leverage the federal recovery funds to attract, prepare, and retain educators