New York State United Teachers this week signed onto a lawsuit seeking to force the U.S. Department of Education and the White House Office of Management and Budget to release $6 billion in education funding previously allocated by Congress for the upcoming school year.
The coalition includes school districts, parents and teachers’ unions in several states. NYSUT says the funding supports low-income students, English language learners, after-school programs, immigrant students and teacher training.
The Education Department says the funding that was due to be released on July 1st is being held for a “programmatic review” to ensure the spending aligns with the Trump administration’s priorities.
For more, WAMC’s Lucas Willard spoke with NYSUT President Melinda Person about the lawsuit.
We have done this before. What is different, I think, in this instance, is we are directly a plaintiff. Oftentimes we are part of coalitions, or our national unions are suing on our behalf, or we are writing briefs in support of the state attorney general, things like that. I think what's different in this case is we're directly a plaintiff ourselves.
So, the lawsuit is over $6 billion in education funding that Congress had already approved for school districts that's now being clawed back by the administration. Could you sort of break it down for me, what does this $6 billion in funding help support, specifically here in New York?
So, the Title funds that are being withheld go to instructional supports for students, particularly migratory students or English language learners. There are training and mentorship programs for new teachers. There are a variety of mental health programs and supports for students. These are programs that districts were expecting the money to come July 1, and it didn't arrive. So, right now, school districts across New York are scrambling to figure out what to do. They're contemplating layoffs, they are canceling contracts, canceling programs, and it's really creating a whole series of problems within our local school districts.
Not to mention that public school districts have already approved their budgets for the coming school year. Is it pretty much safe to say that these funds that they are counting on are already worked into the budgets, and then the money is going to have to come from someplace else, and there's not a lot of money to go around?
Yes, and I would say, you know, this not only threatens the delivery of these critical services to our students, but it erodes the trust that districts and community-based organizations place in the federal government when they say that funding has been allocated by Congress, right? We are now scrambling to figure out if we can continue to provide these programs, or if we have to cancel them all together.
What are some of the challenges and financial pressures that schools may already have been feeling even before this freezing of federal funds? What were some of the pressures and increased costs that individual districts may have been experiencing in recent years?
Well, right now, we are bracing ourselves for potential cuts at the state level due to the federal Medicaid cuts that were included in the budget, and that is an unknown at this point, but we hear policymakers and experts talking about New York state having budget deficits in the realm of $10 to $15 billion which we're concerned will have an impact not only on healthcare, but on education and all other programs across the state, as well.
Now, with the nature of these cuts specifically to programs like English language learning and after school programs and support and training for teachers, do these cuts particularly impact certain populations or certain areas of the state?
I would say it is across the state there are programs that support rural schools, urban schools, suburban schools. No one is left untouched by these cuts, and I would say, though, that our most disadvantaged student populations will feel the greatest harm.
Do you have an idea of how much money per district schools are set to lose in New York?
I don't have a per district number. We have started to compile by Title which programs impact which districts the most. But there are, there has been some reporting that shows losses by a congressional district and the sort of 100 largest districts in impact which we could share if you're looking for some more details.
Absolutely. And I also wanted to talk a little bit about the upcoming cell phone ban. The governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, has asked schools to come up with their plans to restrict the use of cell phones from bell to bell by August 1, and as we're speaking, that's just over a week away. So how are schools doing? If you're in contact with members across the state, how are school teachers and administrators working to implement these plans?
So good. I feel like I should knock on wood. We actually had an event yesterday with the governor and several Capital District school districts, and the union and the superintendent and principals, where they talked about the work that they've been doing since the law was enacted to come up with policies and storage solutions for what we're going to do come September 1. The governor has reported that over 150 school districts have already filed their new policies with the state, and that's growing every day. So, by all counts, things seem to be going really well, and the local collaboration that is happening with school districts, parents and community has been going extremely well.
And briefly, what do educators see as the potential benefits from a school cell phone ban?
Wow, there are so many, and I to name only one would be, would be hard, but I would say it's about connection, restoring human connection in our schools, academic connection, social connection among the students and their peers and the educators that work with them. We believe that the entrance of cell phones into our school settings has really eroded what had historically been a safe space for kids to be kids and to grow and learn and develop, and we are hoping to restore that bit of childhood for seven hours a day for our young students
Melinda Person, thank you so much for taking the time. I appreciate it.
Oh, you're very welcome. Thank you.
