Today, Councilmember David Grosso sent his letter to Mayor Bowser with his priorities for her to consider as she develops Fiscal Year 2021 District of Columbia budget proposal. The letter highlights that greater investments in schools is needed to support our students' needs and our educators' missions. Highlights include:
Requests a 4% increase in per-student funding for new support staff and trauma-informed training.
Requests $3M to support the early literacy intervention grant program to get students on reading level by third grade.
Requests $1.5M to study, support, and expand student safe passage to school.
Requests $250,000 for arts and humanities education data collection and visualization.
Requests a restoration of $825M in capital funding to accelerate school modernizations and ensure additional school communities receive a safe, healthy, and modern facility sooner.
Requests inclusion of full capital funding to provide the Congress Heights community assurance that a free-standing, modern Parklands-Turner Library branch is on the way.
Read the full letter below.