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Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth announced on Friday that almost $179 million has been officially awarded to 327 K-12 public schools across the state that submitted applications and demonstrated a need for capital improvements in their facilities.
The Alabama K-12 Capital Grant Program, which was created by the Legislature during its 2023 regular session, allowed public schools to apply for one-time funding for needed capital projects, deferred maintenance, technology improvements, school security enhancements, or existing debt service. The lieutenant governor was statutorily responsible for administering and overseeing the application, review, and award process.
“Before awarding grants, we consulted with lawmakers across the state to gather their insights because they know their districts and the biggest needs within them,” Ainsworth said. “We reviewed each application with strict adherence to the law, prioritized the schools and systems where funding would make the biggest impact, and worked hard to make sure each geographic region and area of the state received a fair allocation.”
Award letters were mailed to school systems this week, and once requested financial information has been submitted, funding will be released.
Interesting data regarding the grants awarded includes: 80 percent of the grants were awarded to schools in which more than half of the students are considered “at-risk.”
Grants were awarded in 137 school systems across Alabama and will positively impact more than 226,000 students.
The average grant amount awarded was $546,032.11, and the precise total of grants awarded was $178,552,500.
The list of schools receiving grants and the amounts awarded can be seen here.
