BOSTON — State officials recently announced that Braintree Public Schools will be receiving $100,000 of the $12.6 million in funding for community-based COVID-19 response costs currently being distributed by the Department of Public Health.
Braintree was selected as one of 43 schools and districts across the Commonwealth receiving funds through the Crisis Response COVID-19 Supplemental Funding for Workforce Development program administered by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“All of these funds will assist and support two groups that have been on the frontlines of the COVID-19 response – our school health workforce and our local health departments,” said Acting Public Health Commissioner Margret Cooke. “We are grateful for all of their efforts to address the critical health and safety needs of Massachusetts residents throughout these challenging months, and the Administration is committed to being an active partner as we transition into the next phase of the pandemic.”
These funds can be used for a variety of initiatives, including: hiring additional school nurses; expanding the roles of school nurse leaders responsible for health and safety activities across entire school districts; and adding additional staff to assist with case management contact tracing, COVID-19 testing, and student mental health needs within school communities.
Building on a previous $16.6 million investment, state officials also announced that an additional $4 million in grant funding would be awarded to local boards of health for COVID-19 contact tracing and case investigations, bringing the total amount of direct federal and state aid provided to local public health for contact tracing since April 2021 to $20.6 million. These funds are part of the state’s efforts to build and strengthen local public health by providing them with additional funding, training, and technical support as they respond to COVID-19.
State Senator John F. Keenan 