During the pandemic, the federal government sent $190 billion in COVID relief funds to America’s schools. These funds, known as ESSER (or the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund), changed school budgets across the country. But this September, ESSER will come to an end, meaning that—on average—schools will have to reduce their budgets by over $1,000 per student.

How will schools respond? What will get cut? And what should education leaders know to minimize the impacts of the funding cliff? On this episode ofThe Report Card, Nat Malkus discusses these questions, and more, with Marguerite Roza.

Marguerite Roza is a research professor at Georgetown University and the director of the Edunomics Lab.

Show Notes:

School Boards Face Their Most Difficult Budget Season Ever. Many Are Unprepared

The ESSER Fiscal Cliff Will Have Serious Implications for Student Equity

National Education Resource Database on Schools (NERDS)

How Within-District Spending Inequities Help Some Schools to Fail