Zoe Morgan/Town Crier File Photo
Jason Carballar, the Los Altos School District’s warehouse coordinator, shows the cleaning supplies and personal protective equipment the district stockpiled in its board room last fall.
As schools reopen for in-person learning, local districts are receiving millions of dollars in one-time state and federal funding to help cover the additional expenses the pandemic has brought on.
From rapidly rolling out distance learning last spring to now making sure campuses comply with health requirements as students and teachers return, the pandemic has led to an array of unexpected costs.
Districts received various sources of money over the past year to offset the new expenses but are now receiving larger sums, thanks to a California law meant to incentivize reopening, plus the $1.9 trillion federal COVID-19 relief bill that Congress passed last month.
LASD community helps feed families during pandemic
Courtesy of Trish Mitchell
LASD Community Gives Back helps families facing food insecurity.
Every week, former Santa Rita School teacher Trish Mitchell rallies support for the LASD Community Gives Back project, which helps Los Altos School District families grappling with food insecurity.
Led by LASD Board of Trustees member Jessica Speiser and district office employee Jason Carballar, the project has consistently served 40 families per week since May.
“The outpouring of love and support for our own community by our own community has really overwhelmed me,” Mitchell said. “People bring bags and bags of food to my house every day. So every week for about four months, I was taking 40 to 80 bags of groceries to the district office.”