NORTH ROYALTON -- When the state calls on school districts to do more with less, it certainly helps when awarded stimulus dollars help you do more with more.

Over the next two years, the school district will receive more than $1.5 million in federal stimulus funds through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Funds will be geared toward special education transportation, services and programming, said Sue Welch, director of pupil services.

"These funds really help the district get financial support for the services we are expected to provide," Welch said.

"It is wonderful support for the school district so that it can keep providing services students with disabilities deserve."

With the awarded dollars, the district will soon purchase two special needs school buses and pay for special contracted transportation services that usually come out of the general fund.

A certain population of students attend specialized programs outside the school district boundaries. To get them there, officials enter into contracts with private providers to transport the children from home to the program location.

"Those costs can be quite significant," Welch said. "That is 181 days a year of door-to-door service. It can be a large chunk of money."

Stimulus dollars will also be used to pay for specialized related-service needs including the contracted hiring of occupational and physical therapists and teachers for the hearing impaired.

In addition, evacuation chairs will be purchased that allow for the safe method of getting wheelchair-bound students out of the building in the event of a fire or emergency where elevators cannot be used, Welch said.

Roughly 10 percent of the district population, or 470 students, require special needs services.

"From our standpoint, we did not want to use this money to hire staff because we only have access to the money for the next two years," Welch said. "Our thought was we are going to purchase items that the district can get many years use out of and make our programs stronger and better. And it is very exciting to be able to do that. We are building up our inventory for devices the district needs to purchase anyway for students with special needs."

Prior to the stimulus reward, the district received portions of "federal flow through money" that was first sent to the state who in turn distributed it to local school districts, Welch said.

"The dollars save money in the general fund and put it toward other uses," Welch said.

Superintendent Edward Vittardi said the federal funds will help extend the life of other district necessities.

"We are certainly encouraged to receive the federal funds," Vittardi said in an e-mail. "Unfortunately in schools far too often positive financial news is offset by negative news and that is the case in the upcoming year. As part of the two-year state budget, we will lose 1 percent in the coming year and two percent in the following year. In addition, the ever-increasing unfunded mandates make it difficult to maintain programs and services."

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 application process, administration were required to write detailed descriptions and submit reports to the Ohio Department of Education about how the district planned to use the awarded dollars.

"We had to have a goal, an action step and a plan for each item," Welch said. "The application is reviewed by state department consultants and if it is not okay they send back a note and tell you what is missing from your report. It is an intensive process. Our application was approved towards the end of July."