Trump backtracks on after-school funding after bipartisan push

The Hill

3 days ago

Stakeholders and lawmakers are cheering after the Trump administration ended a pause on $6 billion in federal after-school and summer school funding following rare bipartisan pushback.
Advocates and states have been on the edge of their seats since President Trump declined to release the money, which also funds adult education and English language efforts, on the typical July 1 schedule, causing some programs to shut down and leaving others hanging by a thread.
It is unclear if the full $6 billion will be unfrozen, but Aaron Dworkin, CEO of the National Summer Learning Association, told The Hill he is 'delighted' and 'grateful for our leaders for making continued investment.'
'All our partners are in the middle of running their programs right now and so not being sure whether or not they'd have enough funding to get through the whole summer, especially for programs that are serving the most vulnerable and low-income kids, there was a lot of uncertainty and nervousness,' Dworkin added.
The win came one day after 10 GOP senators wrote to Trump's administration decrying the funding pause, but also after weeks of pressure from those involved, including a lawsuit from 24 Democratic-led states filed last Monday.
'We've been meeting with members and staff all week, and they're hearing from their constituents. The constituents themselves who are benefiting from these programs, who are relying on these programs, have been calling their members of Congress to let them know just how much these programs mean to them,' said Jodi Grant, executive director of the Afterschool Alliance.
Fears were mounting every day, advocates said, as programs struggled to stay afloat.
'For some programs, they're starting to close, or have been starting to close immediately. The vast majority, I think, have a Band-Aid' and will be OK after the pause, Grant said.
The Trump administration had said it put the funds under review over concerns the money was going to a 'leftwing radical agenda.'
A senior administration official said Friday the 'programmatic review is over for 21 st Century Community Learning Centers (21 st CCLC). Funds will be released to the states. Guardrails have been put in place to ensure these funds are not used in violation of Executive Orders.'
The official did not clarify what those guardrails might be or the exact date the funding will be released.
Risa Woods, a former teacher for English learners turned education consultant, saw her efforts to help school districts stall during the funding pause.
'I created my own educational consulting business so I could train teachers,' she said, and schools were lining up contracts with her services before the funding pause.
'School districts would email me and say, 'We'd really love you to come, but we don't have the funds. The funds have been frozen, and we'd love to maybe follow up with you later if they are released,'' Woods said.
While Republicans have been either enthusiastic or mum about a wide range of Trump's education cuts, the after-school and summer programming appeared to be a step too far for at least 10 Senate Republicans.
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.), who led the GOP letter opposing the freeze, celebrated on X, saying the funds were released in 'direct response' to their opposition.
In their letter, the Republican senators argued the funding in fact aligns with Trump's goal of putting education in state and local control, which means they might also object to any federal 'guardrails' on it.
'It's correct to think that the red states, but really every state, should want the fewest amount of restrictions on the dollars so that they could do what they want, and that that's consistent with the Trump administration's view of returning education to the states,' said Adam Kissel, visiting fellow in the Heritage Foundation's Center for Education Policy,
'So you just have to live with it if money is going to a blue state for blue state things and you don't like it, or conversely, if it's a blue administration, and money is going out to a red state to do red state things,' he added.
While breathing a momentary sigh of relief, advocates acknowledge they have much work to do before next year, with Trump still target these and other education funds across multiple avenues.
'We remain deeply concerned that the administration is proposing $0 for 21st CCLC next year, instead collapsing it into a 'K-12 Simplified Funding Plan' with dramatically reduced support,' Grant said.