Mayor Freddie O’Connell is welcoming Metro Nashville Public Schools students back to the classroom and highlighting investments in MNPS student success. In both the unanimously passed Operating budget and Capital Spending Plan, Mayor O’Connell prioritized investments in education.
O’Connell’s first operating budget included $18 million for new student textbooks and another $77 million in funding to avert the so-called ‘ESSER cliff’ by providing local funding to continue successful pilot programs created with federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds (ESSER) through the upcoming school year. The programs have made a unique difference in the lives of students and their families. With federal funding ending, this budget provides a bridge to continue these services through the upcoming school year.
In all, $77 million in funding allows the following programs to continue:
- Nurses in every school
- Safety ambassadors
- The scholars portfolio (Accelerating Scholars, Promising Scholars, and Enriching Scholars) which provides critical tutoring and extra instruction
- Math textbooks and instructional materials
- Mental Health supports
- Professional development for teachers and staff
- College and career readiness programming
- Expansion of Community Achieves
Schools also represented the largest group of investments in the Capital Spending Plan (CSP). The CSP funds further work at Lakeview Elementary, Paragon Mills Elementary, Percy Priest Elementary—all of which are going through major renovations or rebuilds and invests $47 million in MNPS properties across the city. The plan also initiates solar installation at two schools to lower costs and increase energy security.
“Metro Schools excelled throughout the pandemic, showing a faster bounce back from learning loss than almost all their other peer school districts,” O’Connell said. “We are supporting our students by ensuring they have the programming they need to succeed, and we support our teachers with the best facilities possible.”
