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Massachusetts Schools Sharing Grants To Educate Students From Puerto Rico

BOSTON (AP) — A dozen school districts that serve students who came to Massachusetts from Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria are sharing in federally funded grants.

Republican Gov. Charlie Baker's administration says the $60,000 in McKinney-Vento homeless education grants can be used for a variety of purposes, including tutoring and before- or after-school programs.

Boston, Chicopee, Fall River, Fitchburg, Holyoke, Lawrence, Leominster, Lowell, New Bedford, Southbridge, Springfield and Worcester will each receive $5,000.

Officials say those districts are educating 85 percent of the more than 2,100 students from Puerto Rico who have enrolled in public schools in Massachusetts since the hurricane.

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Storm damage from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Baker says he plans to work with the Legislature to provide additional state funding for any district that needs it to help with the influx of new students.

(© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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