LOYAL. LOCAL. COMPLETE.
A statement issued to the parents of Paris-Union 95 students on Tuesday, July 8, announced that Beyond the Bell and 21st CCLC Club programming will not begin on Sept. 2 as originally planned.
Per the statement, “Federal funding uncertainty” is the cause of the program’s delay.
“We wanted to inform the school community as early as possible to allow families to make after-school arrangements for their children, and for staff to adjust personal financial plans,” the statement said.
Funds for Beyond the Bell and the 21st Century Club programming are directly allocated from the federal grant known as the 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant. While funding for schools across the nation was previously appropriated by Congress, the current presidential administration did not send those funds to the states for distribution to any grantees.
“Beyond the Bell and the 21st Century Club programming provide valuable learning opportunities for our students, and we regret that this delay is necessary,” the district’s statement said. “We are not able to hire and pay club and Beyond the Bell staff or purchase supplies without that grant funding.”
The district’s statement promised to keep “the school community informed of developments” and earmarked Oct. 20 a new target date, if the federal funds become available.
It is possible that the federal government will release the grant funds; it is also possible that the district will not receive any 21st Century Community Learning Center grant funds this year,” the statement said.
In a comment directly to The Prairie Press, District 95 Superintendent Mary Morgan Ryan shared her own dismay with the situation.
“We want to emphasize that we share the disappointment of our students, their families and our staff regarding the delay in starting Beyond the Bell and 21st CCLC afterschool clubs,” she said. “No community or state has received its federal funding yet. Keeping our school community informed and up to date remains our top priority at this time.”
Across the country day camp providers and schools have experienced similar frustrations. More than $6 billion in federal grants for after-school and summer programs, English language instruction and adult literacy are currently being withheld as “part of a review to ensure grants align with President Donald Trump’s priorities,” according to AP news sources.
Nationwide, programs were expecting funds to be distributed on July 1. However, a notice issued from the Education Department on Monday announced that the money would not be released while the programs are under review. The department did not provide a timeline and warned that “decisions have not yet been made” on grants for the upcoming school year.
“The Department remains committed to ensuring taxpayer resources are spent in accordance with the President’s priorities and the Department’s statutory responsibilities,” Education Department officials wrote in the notice.
The department referred all news questions to the Office of Management and Budget, which did not respond to a request for comment from AP news sources and The Prairie Press.