The Department of Education (ED) announced Thursday that an additional $21.2 billion is now available to institutions of higher education to serve students and ensure learning continues during the COVID-19 pandemic. This funding is allocated to the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund II (HEERF II) by the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA), which was signed into law on Dec. 27, 2020.
The Consolidated Appropriations Act provides relief for higher education institutions through the CRRSA Act with nearly $23 billion directly provided to higher education institutions, using the same HEERF model established in the CARES Act. ED’s announcement on Thursday awards $20.5 billion to public and non-profit colleges and universities and $681 million to proprietary schools. Public and non-profit schools can use their awards for financial aid grants to students, student support activities, and to cover a variety of institutional costs, including lost revenue, reimbursement for expenses already incurred, technology costs associated with a transition to distance education, faculty and staff trainings, and payroll. For-profit schools must use their awards exclusively to provide financial aid grants to students.
“The Department is working quickly, yet again, to ensure taxpayer-funded COVID relief allocated by Congress gets to those who need it most. I would encourage leaders of our higher education institutions to use this funding as former U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos suggested during the first round of relief—to support students who are struggling financially in the wake of this pandemic and to build IT and distance learning capacity for now and in preparation for the future,” said Acting U.S. Secretary of Education Dr. Mitchell “Mick” Zais.
Unlike the funding approved under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, ED will not limit emergency grants to only students eligible to receive Title IV financial aid. Allocations for HEERF II are based on a formula that includes the relative shares of Federal Pell Grant recipients, the relative shares of non-Pell Grant recipients, and the relative shares of Federal Pell and non-Pell Grant recipients exclusively enrolled in distance education prior to the coronavirus emergency.
Public and private non-profit institutions that already have approved CARES Act HEERF awards are not required to submit a new or revised application to receive additional funding under the CRRSAA. Public and private nonprofit institutions that did not receive HEERF Student Portion and/or Institutional Portion awards under the CARES Act, as well as proprietary institutions, may apply for funding under the CRRSAA via Grants.gov. New applications are due by April 15, 2021.
Among the documents released Thursday, ED provided a fact sheet and an FAQ document for the distribution of the HEERF II dollars authorized by Congress.
Sources:
ED: U.S. Department of Education Quickly Makes Available More Than $21 Billion in Taxpayer Funds to Support Continued Education at Colleges, Universities
CRRSAA: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF II)
NASFAA: ED Announces Distribution Details for $21 Billion in Additional HEERF Aid