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October 26, 2020
Dear School Administrator:
To help combat the spread of COVID-19, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on April 2 signed an executive order that suspended in-person instruction of K-12 students and provided limited and temporary relief from certain requirements so K-12 education could continue by the best alternative means possible during the 2019-2020 school year.
Due to the extraordinary circumstances school faced during this time, the state of Michigan’s Fiscal Year 2021 budget is providing $53 million for eligible K-12 classroom teachers and $20 million for eligible support staff. The Michigan Department of Treasury is administering these dollars under both the Teacher COVID-19 Grant and the Support Staff COVID-19 Grant programs, providing eligible classroom teachers up to $500 and eligible support staff up to $250.
To qualify for a grant, classroom teachers must have worked at a public school, public school academy or nonprofit nonpublic school with at least 75% of their standard instruction in brick and mortar classrooms during the last school year before the suspension of in-person instruction on April 2. Support staff must have been employed at a public school district with at least 75% of their workload in brick and mortar buildings during the last school year before the suspension of in-person instruction on April 2.
The Michigan Department of Treasury will be working directly with districts, nonprofit nonpublic schools, and other partners in the education community to implement these grant programs and distribute grant dollars to recipients. Some key dates for school administrators to remember are:
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October 23-November 9: School districts and nonprofit nonpublic schools will be able to obtain a draft list of potential grant recipients based on 2019-2020 school filings to the Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI) as presented in the Registry of Education Personnel (REP) or Nonpublic School Personnel Report (NPSPR).
Districts and nonpublic schools that reported in the 2019-2020 school year will have reported data prepopulated in the TSSC19 District Template, which is available within the REP or NPSPR system under “Submission Reports.”
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November 9: Districts and nonprofit nonpublic schools must identify eligible classroom teachers and school support staff eligible for the Teacher COVID-19 Grant or Support COVID-19 Grant programs, including determining the Full Time Employee (FTE) calculation for the eligible grant recipients.
Districts and nonprofit public schools must post a notice that eligible grant recipients have been identified and provide Form 5734, Teacher and School Support Staff COVID-19 Grants Certification to eligible classroom teachers and eligible support staff. The district must also notify eligible grant recipients of the Full Time Employee (FTE) calculation to be applied for eligibility if less than fully reported as 1 FTE. Individuals who believe they qualify for a grant and are deemed ineligible or disagree with their FTE status have an opportunity to appeal their status with the school entity by December 4, 2020.
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December 4-December 16: Eligible grant recipients must return Form 5734 to the district or nonprofit nonpublic school in a manner required by school administrators
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December 16: Districts and nonprofit nonpublic schools will submit the final eligibility list to the Michigan Department of Treasury using the Michigan eSignature Solution on the Teacher and Support Staff COVID-19 grant programs webpage.
To help school administrators navigate through these two grant programs, the Michigan Department of Treasury has developed a frequently asked questions document and detailed checklist that outlines steps and deadlines that must be taken to ensure eligible individuals receive their much-deserved grant checks.
For more information about the grant programs, please visit Michigan.gov/TSSC19Grants. Questions about these grant programs should be directed by phone to 517-241-6000 or email to TSSC19Grants@michigan.gov.
Thank you for all you do for our children and our state during these extraordinary times.
Best regards,
Bureau of Local Government and School Services
Michigan Department of Treasury
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