Schools all over the country are receiving money from Congress due to the pandemic and the effects it has had on education. But some schools are using this federal pandemic relief to revamp their athletic facilities.

This COVID relief fund should be used toward academics, not athletics. 

According to Congress.gov, this new education fund is a part of the American Rescue Plan of 2021 that Biden signed in March.  The fund goes toward elementary, secondary and higher education. This plan also specifically states that the money be used toward “maintenance of effort and maintenance of equity” and “outlying areas.”

This wording lacks clarity and schools are taking advantage of it. Government officials should have been more clear and specifically stated that this money be used to improve academic learning that took a hit due to the pandemic. 

Many schools have been taking this money and using it to fund building new a football field, weight room or track, according to the Associated Press. While all these things are important, this is not what the education relief fund was intended for. 

Some might argue that the money should go toward athletics because it improves mental and physical health, which falls under the rescue plan’s guidelines. Although this could be true, it seems like a reach to justify spending the COVID relief fund on a new track when your school needs new textbooks.

According to the Associated Press, districts are required to tell states how they’re spending the money, but some schools are using local funding for sports projects and then replacing the money they spent with federal relief dollars. By doing this, schools can get away with not reporting what they spent the money on.

It seems like it would be easier to spend the money how it was intended and buy equipment to improve education, such as laptops and textbooks.

Schools have not been using this money in the way that the relief plan intended and it could have been avoided if federal officials had presented funding guidelines more clearly.