Kayla Buchan saw firsthand the frustrations that remote learning created for students during the first months of the pandemic.
Trying to learn online — and losing the personal connection with school staff — cost her middle-school son the momentum he had gained in a new school and new grade, the Millard mother told the Legislature’s Appropriations Committee on Feb. 28.
As time went on, he fell back into the struggles that had marked his earlier school years and with his failures came depression that continues even after students have gone back to in-person learning.
That’s why Buchan testified in support of a bill that would provide up to $2,000 per child to help Nebraska students catch up on learning lost during the pandemic.
LB1240, introduced by Sen. Joni Albrecht of Thurston, would direct $60 million of Nebraska’s federal pandemic relief dollars for education recovery grants. Gov. Pete Ricketts included the idea in his proposal for pandemic money.
Under the bill, money would be given out over three years to children from low-income families. Parents would direct the use of the grants, which could be used for private school tuition, tutoring, digital learning subscriptions, home school curriculum and other K-12 educational services.
“This is a critical opportunity to make an important investment in our children,†Albrecht said.
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Jeremy Ekeler, associate director of education policy for the Nebraska Catholic Conference, said the proposal was crafted with the goal of giving a hand temporarily to children who need it the most.
“This is a bill about vulnerable kids, not public versus nonpublic schools,†he said. “We can’t split hairs on this issue when the future of Nebraska’s most-impacted students is at risk.â€
However, he also contrasted the bill’s cost with the more than $775 million that has gone to public schools over three rounds of federal pandemic aid. LB1240 would draw on the $1.04 billion provided to the state under the latest round, the American Rescue Plan Act.
Many of those who testified for the bill have children in private schools or are affiliated with private schools. Among them was Isabella Burns, who attends Catholic school. She told lawmakers about her difficulty understanding the teachers and seeing what they were doing while trying to learn online.
But Jacqelle Lane, with the Nebraska State Education Association, and Daniel Russell, with Stand for Schools, opposed the bill.
Russell said the money would be better used for such things as after-school programs, summer school for all grades, retaining teachers and hiring more mental health professionals. He estimated that the amount of money to be provided for the grants would help about 9,000 students, once administrative expenses are factored in.
“We need statewide solutions that benefit all students, not tuition discounts to just a few,†he said.