Educators across the U.S. have described their shock and outrage as the Department of Education looks to make good on its promise to slim down, costing billions in funding to local school districts.
Rumors of the move have been swirling for months, after President Donald Trump announced his plans to ultimately close the DOE, though some say the reality is “worse than [they] imagined” – having expected to begin receiving the grants on July 1.
Some education advocacy groups estimate that between $5 and $6.8 billion is at stake, Politico reported, and will potentially impact afterschool programs, teacher training initiatives and education for migrant students, among countless other things.
However, the Trump administration has said that the final decisions on its 2025 fiscal grant funding for various programs have not been made, according to officials who spoke to the outlet. The funds will not be handed out until the review is complete, officials added.
It is not certain how long the review will take, leaving many schools and districts in limbo.
Maryland State School Superintendent Carey Wright said that some $360 million of federal funding committed to the state would now not be being granted, adding: “Shock does not begin to describe our reaction.”
“The USDE’s decision is catastrophic,” Wright said on Monday. “These funds have been spent or committed with every expectation of reimbursement. The federal government must keep its word to students, educators and families.”'
Tony Thurmond, California State Superintendent of Public Instruction, said that the cuts would impact students immediately.
“There have been many rumors about the Trump Administration cutting education funding, and now that rumors have become reality, it is worse than we imagined,” Thurmond said in a statement to The Los Angeles Times. “Trump is illegally impounding billions of dollars appropriated by Congress to serve students this fiscal year.
“This illegal action will harm students starting now. It cannot stand.”
In written communications to individual states about its plans, obtained by Politico, the DOE wrote: “The Department remains committed to ensuring taxpayer resources are spent in accordance with the President’s priorities and the Department’s statutory responsibilities.”
Educators have been bracing for the cuts for months, with states including Kansas appealing directly to the Trump administration, begging it to consider the needs of their students.
“It will be a big deal if Kansas loses $22.6 million,” said Jake Steel, the director of strategy and operational alignment in the Kansas education commissioner’s office, in April. “That is a huge, huge deal.”
“We’re not trying to make enemies. We’re not trying to use kids as political pawns,” Steel told the Kansas Reflector. “We’re just trying to do what is best for students, and we will respond as requested, and we will fulfill all the laws.”
