Colorado school district braces for federal funding cuts
CBS News Colorado spoke with parents and educators in the Adams 12 Five Star Schools district about the potential impact.
"It makes me incredibly nervous and sad for my kids, what their future looks like," said Jennifer Culbert, an Adams 12 parent. Culbert said she has felt fortunate that her three sons have had access to services offered in the district.
"They are 'GT' kids, so gifted and talented," she said. "They need social emotional learning, probably more than the academia."
Jennifer Culbert, whose children attend Adams 12 Five Star Schools, worries about what federal education cuts could mean for her kids' education.
CBS
But programs like those for gifted and talented students — which rely on federal funding — have recently been put on hold.
"We were all shocked to hear last week that a number of those funding sources, four big ones for us, have now been placed on a frozen status," said Chris Gdowski, superintendent of Adams 12 Five Star Schools.
Gdowski said the district expects to lose roughly $3 million next school year as a result. That includes about $850,000 for after-school and summer enrichment programs at high-poverty Title I schools, $500,000 for English language learners, another $500,000 for gifted and talented and STEM programs, and more than $1 million that would have supported a new literacy curriculum for middle schools.
"We held some funds aside in the spring as we did our budget plan as a hedge," Gdowski said. "We're now going to draw upon those funds so we can sustain these programs and keep our staff in place."
But that won't solve the long-term problem, officials say.
"It's only enough for next year, and we're really going to suffer the following year," said Deborah Blake, coordinator with the District 12 Education Association. "I'm really worried for our students. Our students are going to suffer the biggest impact, and especially our neediest students."
If the federal dollars aren't replenished, the district may have to make difficult choices, Blake said: "We might have to cut staff, and that means bigger class sizes."
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