OMAHA- Last Wednesday, Omaha Public Schools officials updated school board members on the status of the remaining federal COVID-19 funding it had received, which must be allocated by September 2024. "There is approximately $8.19 million at-risk, unobligated funds that we originally budgeted for in an activity that we don't think we need that much money for," Shane Rhian, chief financial officer for OPS, told the board.

Over the next three months, said Rhian, district officials will be discussing what to do with the remaining funding before coming to the board with a formal proposal in March or April. Allocation options, according to Rhian, include facility upgrades or new staff technology which could be utilized by teachers and paraprofessionals. "We feel we will be able to use funds fully within the time frame allotted," Rhian said.

Since March 2020, three pandemic relief bills have been passed by Congress to help schools recover academically and emotionally from COVID-19, with OPS, the largest school district in the state, having received the most money in Nebraska, nearly $304.2 million. Purchases made by OPS with the additional funding included additional staff wages, facility upgrade projects, and tutoring for students who missed school early in the pandemic.

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