Federal stimulus funds to support students at schools that do not meet Adequate Yearly Progress

HONOLULU—Gov. Linda Lingle authorized the use of $5,208,793 in federal stimulus funds to support Extended Learning Opportunities for students at public schools that have not met federal Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) standards.

Extended Learning Opportunities add instructional time to the scheduled school day and also add classes during Saturdays, semester breaks, and summers. These extended learning periods help students who need remedial instruction or who miss classes and need more credits to graduate. 

The Department of Education will use $2,817,007 to provide Extended Learning Opportunities classes of up to two additional hours a day at high schools, intermediate/middle schools, and elementary schools statewide that failed to meet Adequate Yearly Progress goals during the 2009-2010 school year. 

In addition, $2,391,786 will be used to support Extended Learning Opportunities Intensive Summer School at middle and high schools that have a high number of students failing English, math, and science classes. The intensive summer school program would augment the after-hours extended learning program.

English and mathematics are the subject areas tested in the Hawaii State Assessment to determine if Adequate Yearly Progress is being met. The funds will be used to pay the salaries of teachers, teaching assistants, and related support staff in each school who would conduct the extended learning classes. 

The $5.2 million funding is part of the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund, Part B made available to the State as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act passed by Congress in February 2009. Governors have discretion over how to use Part B funds, which for Hawaii totaled almost $35 million. Lingle has elected to dedicate all of the Part B funds toward public education. The governor has allocated approximately 34 percent of the funds to support charter schools, and approximately 66 percent to expand science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education programs.