The ESSER cliff: which Long Island districts spent the most federal relief per student

A data report ranking Long Island districts by ESSER relief spent per student as federal pandemic aid expires.

ESSER stands for the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund — the federal money Congress sent schools during the pandemic. Long Island districts received tens of millions of dollars from it. That money has to be spent by a federal deadline this year, which is why it is in the news now.

Here is how much each district reported spending, per student, in the most recent filing year. We show the four highest below; you can look up any district at the link beneath the chart.

How much each district spent per student

ESSER spending per student (FY 2023–24)

Hempstead UFSD
$4,200
Brentwood UFSD
$3,100
Central Islip UFSD
$2,850
Freeport UFSD
$1,900

Top 4 of 124 Long Island districts. The vertical line marks the median, so you can see how far above it these four are.

NYSED ST-3 filings, FY 2023–24

In the data, the districts that spent the most per student also tend to enroll the most students from low-income families. That is what the filings show; the numbers do not, on their own, say whether the money was spent well.

What happens when the money ends

ESSER was one-time money. When a district used it for an ongoing cost — say, hiring staff or adding a program — that cost does not disappear when the funding does. The district then has to cover it from another source, usually the local tax levy, or end it. A useful question to ask your own district: which of the things ESSER paid for are continuing, and how are they being paid for now?

Browse