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Charlotte County Public Schools (CCPS) will be receiving more than $280,000 in additional CARES funding according to a release from Gov. Ralph Northam’s office Thursday, Oct. 8.

The funding will support COVID-19 preparedness and response measures for the 2020–2021 school year, including testing supplies, personal protective equipment, sanitization, and distance learning technology.

According to CCPS Superintendent Robbie Mason the school system will receive $283,000.

“This money has to be spent on COVID-related expenses,” Mason said. “And we will be paying for some of our many additional PPE expenditures as well as new instructional technology costs resulting from COVID-19.”

“This funding is critical as we continue to provide safe, high-quality education for Virginia students,” Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. James Lane said. “I am grateful to Governor Northam for his ongoing support of public education—and I can assure you that his funding will immediately be put to good use.”

Throughout the commonwealth, funding will be distributed to all 132 public school districts using an allocation formula of $175 per pupil based on fall enrollment, with a minimum of $100,000 for each school division.

“Students, teachers, principals, and parents are going to great lengths to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic amid a new school year, and we must do everything we can to support them,” Northam said. “This additional $220 million in federal funding will give our schools the resources they need to continue operating and provide Virginians with a world-class education, whether safely in person or remotely from home.”

Northam was one of the country’s first governors to close schools for in-person instruction when COVID-19 began to spread quickly during the 2020 spring semester.

Many Virginia school divisions, including CCPS, have been working overtime to adapt during the fall semester, and many continue to face challenges associated with maintaining public health protocols and increased technology needs.

Currently, CCPS is set to return to in-person instruction in a hybrid manner Monday, Oct. 19 but with a jump in COVID-19 cases the school board will discuss what that means for students returning during its monthly meeting scheduled for this week according to Mason.