Horne pleased with release of some paused federal dollars

Money available for after-school programs

PHOENIX – State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne issued the following statement following the announcement that federal funds for after school programs that were previously under review will be released to the states.

Horne stated, “The after school grants are valuable because they offer students a chance to get additional help with reading, math, completing homework assignments and other tasks that help them academically. This is welcome news for these programs that would have been affected by the loss of federal dollars. Once we have formal notification from the federal government and allocations to schools are calculated, we will work very hard to pass these funds through to the recipients.”

He added, “When this review was announced, I urged schools to be calm while the federal government studied these funds to ensure they are being used appropriately. I anticipate other funds still being reviewed will be released in the near future.”

In the current fiscal year, Arizona receives a total of approximately $24 million in after-school funds through the 21st Century grant program.

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Newsrooms:  Here is a recent video where Supt. Horne explains his position on the federal funding review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=st6bKF6zDxA&t=1s