State gives K–12 teachers earlier access to money for classroom supplies
By Devna Bose | Originally published by Mississippi Today
As the first day of school inches closer, Mississippi education officials are making it easier for K-12 teachers to access the money the state gives teachers to set up their classrooms.
The Education Enhancement Fund, or EEF, procurement card program, which was established in 2012, gives every teacher $748 — around $25 million in total — to buy supplies for their classrooms.
However, a report released last year by State Auditor Shad White’s office concluded that $17.8 million of that money is locked when “teachers need it most” because the cards weren’t activated for districts until Aug. 1, as required by state law. That meant teachers, in some cases, had to dip into their own pockets to purchase the supplies or start the year without things they needed.
This year, the education agency is making the money available to districts on July 15 and shifting to a digital wallet platform instead of dispersing physical cards for payments.
The cards had limitations, including delays in replacement and dispute resolution and placed a significant administrative load on state Education Department and district staff, State Superintendent Lance Evans said in a letter about the program that he sent White in June.
The new platform, ClassWallet, is built specifically for classroom supply funds and should make it easier for teachers to capture receipts, resolve any issues and directly pay vendors, he said.
The Education Department’s transition to a digital wallet platform for teachers to access EEF classroom supply funds is a response to district input, said Jean Cook, a spokesperson for the education department. “The agency convened a panel of school district business managers and EEF card administrators from across the state, and their input informed the selection of the new digital wallet platform.”
Cook said the agency typically releases funds to districts in July, with the exception of the past two years because of vendor changes. But until 2022, the cards weren’t activated for districts until Sept. 1.
Legislation passed that year moved the activation date up to Aug. 1 to help teachers access the money earlier.
However, Hannah Bagwell, a fifth grade math and science teacher at Florence Elementary, said in her 13 years of teaching, she has typically gotten her procurement card after school has started.
That meant adding pens, pencils and crayons to her shopping cart during summer grocery store trips and reusing classroom decorations each year. She estimates she spent a couple of hundred dollars a year to make her classroom feel welcoming for her new students.
After she got her EEF card in past years, Bagwell would buy dry erase markers and copy paper. But she still had to spend her own money on several items for her classroom.
Keyana Hawthorne, an 11th grade English teacher at Murrah High, said she’s spent up to $1,000 of her own money preparing her classroom for students because of how late the EEF card has been activated in years past.
She said she’s grateful state officials are recognizing and trying to fix the gap, but she’s skeptical about increasing limitations on the money and the program’s rollout.
Making the money available earlier is good in theory, but teachers may not have immediate access to it, Hawthorne said. “Just because the funds open on July 15 doesn’t guarantee my district is going to give me the funds then.”
Education agency officials told district business managers that the digital accounts must be activated between July 15 and Aug. 1, and that districts should ensure teachers attend a virtual training session this month on how to use the program.
“I’m praying it works and that every district does what they’re supposed to do,” Hawthorne said.
This article was originally published by Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Source: Original Article
