Hamilton County: Schools get stimulus funds for poor students

The Hamilton County school system received another $7.8 million in stimulus aid from the federal government, this time to be used for poor students, officials announced Thursday.

The money is a portion of the $186 million allocated to school systems across Tennessee as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

In order to use the money — called Title I funding — schoolwide, 40 percent of a building’s student population must receive federally supplemented free or reduced-price lunches.

The $7.8 million will be distributed to Hamilton County’s 36 Title I schools based on student enrollment, officials said. Funds either can be used at Title I schools for resources to be used by all students — including those who are not poor — or to expand or create tutoring and enrichment programs for low-income students only, said state Department of Education spokeswoman Amanda Anderson.

The Title I money is meant to provide extra resources for students who come from low-income families, so the stimulus money should help school districts raise their achievement scores, said Tennessee Education Commissioner Tim Webb.

“We know these additional funds will help our school districts close the achievement gap and improve education for at-risk students, and we’re excited that these dollars will allow schools to reach more students than ever before,” Dr. Webb said in a prepared statement.

The money does not affect Hamilton County’s general operating budget because it can be used only at Title I schools, said Danielle Clark, the school system’s spokeswoman.

Each school district will receive the money in two equal installments, once before Sept. 30 and once after Oct. 1, Ms. Anderson said. The funds represent all of the Title I money that will be given to school districts over the two-year stimulus program, she said.

“It’s sort of a spend wisely, don’t spend it all in one place (situation),” she said.