Latest news with #Title1
The Hill
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
New York Republican urges Trump to restore funding for after-school programs
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) is urging President Trump to restore federal funding for 21st Century Community Learning Centers, which provides funding for before- and after-school programs, including those in his district. The administration is withholding more than $6 billion in federal funds for after-school and summer programs that was included in the government funding bill signed by Trump on March 15. Officials say it's part of a review to ensure the programs align with White House priorities. Trump also proposed cutting the funding in fiscal year 2026, which begins on Oct. 1. Lawler wrote that the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) program 'is deeply aligned with your Administration's goals to return power to education authorities, instead of Washington, DC bureaucrats. State Education Agencies are fully responsible for administering the grant, providing each community with the opportunity to distribute funding where it is most needed.' 'Further, 21st Century Community Learning Centers are a perfect example of what happens when we take the federal government out of education – outcomes are better. Students that participate in these programs have been found to have better attendance records, are more engaged in their classes, and see improvements in their academic performance, including in reading and math,' he added. According to the After School Alliance, 21st CCLC supports 10,000 local programs that serve almost 1.4 million children nationwide. It was allocated more than $1.3 billion for fiscal year 2025. States participating in this program get funds based on their shares of Title 1 low-income students. A spokesman for the White House's Office of Management and Budget said the freeze 'is an ongoing programmatic review of education funding' and no decisions have yet been made. 'Initial findings show that many of these grant programs have been grossly misused to subsidize a radical leftwing agenda. In one case, NY public schools used English Language Acquisition funds to promote illegal immigrant advocacy organizations. In another, Washington state used funds to direct illegal immigrants towards scholarships intended for American students. In yet another, School Improvement funds were used to conduct a seminar on 'queer resistance in the arts,'' they added. According to a May 2025 study by the After School Alliance, 4 in 5 Republicans support greater investments in after-school programs, and 8 and 10 Republicans say it's an 'absolute necessity.' 'Afterschool and summer learning programs are an American success story. The Trump Administration's decision to withhold FY25 afterschool funding is a stunning betrayal,' wrote the After School Alliance in a statement. 'Withholding these funds will cause lasting harm to students and families, and to our education system, our future workforce, and our economy. If these funds are not released very soon, we will quickly see more children and youth unsupervised and at risk, more academic failures, more hungry kids, more chronic absenteeism, higher dropout rates, more parents forced out of their jobs, and a less STEM-ready and successful workforce as our child care crisis worsens dramatically,' they continued.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'Good news' from school board meeting
Lee County School officials shared some 'good news' at their July 8 school board meeting. Superintendent Chris Dossenbach noted that he asked vendors that the district utilized over the past year to voluntarily help fund costs associated with two upcoming events: a three-day accelerated learning conference and a convocation. Both are scheduled prior to the start of school next month. Over $25,000 has been committed for these events. 'Those who we supported stepped up to support us,' he said. In addition, he noted that because the district anticipated that there could be a delay in receiving some federal funds, it should be OK even though such funds have been delayed because the district budgeted for it. 'We may have to make some minor cuts here and there, but we don't feel like it's going to be too major for us here,' he said. Funds impacted by the delays include Title 1©, 2 and 3. These represent migrant education, professional development for staff, and 'after school' programs and enrichment for gifted students. The total for these programs is around $1 million. 'We remain hopeful that the funds will be released,' he said. Dossenbach noted that Lee County's portion of some $6.8 billion in federal education funds relates to the Trump administration reviewing seven federal education programs. The disbursement date for such was July 1, according to LCHS BLEACHERS Construction of new bleachers on the visitors' side of the Lee County High School football field will begin this month, Dossenbach said, noting this is earlier than the previous start date in October. This will save the district some funds that would have been spent on bleacher rentals for some football games, he said. PRESCHOOL Board member Alan Rummel noted that the district plans to add a second entrance at W.B. Wicker Elementary to accommodate the addition of the district's preschool, which is moving from Warren Williams School. This includes installation of a security door and 'customer window' in the office. In addition, the district is adding two classroom exit doors and sidewalks. A relatively new playground at Warren Williams was recently moved to W.B. Wicker and a new sign will be installed. If the preschool had remained at Warren Williams, some $1 million in upgrades were needed there, he added. LOCAL PRODUCE Rummel noted that, in accord with a school board goal, LCS will be using some local produce this year in students' lunches. R&H Produce won a bid for grocery supplies and will include products as part of the North Carolina Farm to School program. BUS GARAGE The board unanimously approved a Request for Qualifications submission from CRA Associates of Chapel Hill, an architectural and engineering firm, for a new bus garage. Rummel noted that CRA designed the bus garage in Chatham County. The 27,000-square-foot Chatham bus garage with 16 work bays — which was built in 2017 — cost $6.1 million following a $5.8 million bid and some change orders, according to a board document. LCS' bus garage has a budget of $13.5 million, he said, noting he'd like to stay under that amount. LCS' Director of Facilities Chris McNeill recently told the Sanford Herald that the tentative plan is to build the new bus garage next to the district's current facility on Cox Maddox Road.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
State budget questions have impact on APS budget process
Jun. 10—Editor's Note: This story will be updated as more information becomes available. The Minnesota State Legislature was able to get its budget wrapped up during a furious one-day special session, but the delay in the lead-up already had uncertain repercussions on the process of Austin Public Schools budget. Slated to present a plan Monday night during the Austin Public School Board's meeting, Executive Director of Finance and Operations Todd Lechtenberg informed the board that budget finalization would come later because there was so much uncertainty at the state level and its budget. "We just have too many moving parts," Lechtenberg told the board, after going through some of the things known and unknown. The Legislature's K-12 education bill would increase funding for Minnesota schools by $4.2 million in the 2026-27 biennium, however, the bill calls for $420 million in general education funding cuts in the following biennium. While there will be some work to dig through and see what the budget ultimately consists of and its effects on APS, some of the things already in the budget included reductions in three different areas. Compensatory aid modifications could decrease revenue by around $277,136, though Lechtenberg did say that is down from what it was in the beginning at around a $1.1 million decrease. However, this is a one-time reprieve and a task force is currently being formed to address this point. Announced late Monday night, the bill would also call for a 10% cut in transportation funding for students with disabilities by fiscal year 2027, resulting in a 5% decrease in special ed transportation aid for districts in 2026. That cut would further reduce 90% coverage in 2027. This cost was 100% covered in the past. The state's education bill would also cut school library aid by $19.62 million in fiscal years 2026-27, which could reduce the impact to APS by around $31,537. However, at the same time the summer unemployment coverage was expected to be continued through 2028. Lechtenberg also pointed to several things that further add to the unknown of APS's budget including what the effects will be of the Minnesota Paid Leave legislation, which will kick into effect on Jan. 1 There will also be the impact of union settlements which are still in the process of being negotiated, the impacts of tariffs enacted by the Trump Administration, a potential district referendum and federal funding. In particular, the federal funding question revolves around title funding. The district has already received its Title 1 and Title 4 funding, but they don't know the dollar amounts for Title 2 and Title 3 funding yet. Also factored into the budget discussions will be the impact of a lower than estimated projected district enrollment, though that could be mitigated somewhat by a state aid increase to $7,481 per student representing a 2.74% increase. The district will pick up the budget discussion again on June 24, and are required to finalize the budget by June 30. In other news: Board members adopted a 14% increase to its medical insurance renewal in order to keep up with expected claims for the 2025-2026 school year as well as a 3% increase to do the same. According to Lechtenberg, the district was operating at 112% and 142% lost ratio for the 12-month spans of April 2024 to March 2025 and April 2023 to March 2024 respectively. However, the increase is a step down from last year when the district instituted a 24% increase.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
PPS board unanimously votes to approve $2 billion budget amid $40 million shortfall
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Portland Public School board unanimously voted to approve the $2 billion proposed budget on Monday night, moving one step closer to several budget cuts as the district attempts to address a $40 million shortfall. The Portland Association of Teachers told KOIN 6 that they're disappointed in the proposed cuts. However, the organization says some things are moving in the right direction. PPS Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong says the district is expecting to receive Title 1 funding on Wednesday, which will provide greater support to low-income schools. As far as the impending budget cuts, PAT President Angela Bonilla says the budget woes boil down to what state leaders decide to do, which could start by getting rid of the Oregon tax kicker. 'We need the legislature to step up. And then what we need from is to invest every single dollar they possibly can to direct student services. Folks who are facing students. Folks who are supporting the educators, facing our students who are in our schools, making sure that every single day kids feel seen, they feel supported, they feel protected,' she said. Bonilla also says voters passing the $1.8 billion bond in Tuesday's special election would help with the money problems. This bond would help with the modernization of Cleveland, Jefferson and Wells high schools. Many parents have been rallying over the last several weeks, hoping to sway people's vote. 'People who have said that the bond isn't clear enough. It is a rather large bond at $1.83 billion. I think you've heard that before. So for that, we worked really hard. And I know PPS administration is working very hard to clarify what's in the bond,' said Cleveland parent Megan Steffek. The board has less than a month now to vote on a final budget. KOIN 6 will know more about these proposed cuts on June 10. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Plan for charter school teacher raises unveiled at Nevada Legislature
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — In line with statements made over the past week, Democratic Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager on Thursday unveiled a proposal at the Nevada Legislature to fund raises for charter school teachers throughout the state. And despite statements that were generally supportive, paying for those raises might prove a bitter pill to swallow if the legislation moves forward. Yeager proposed committing $90 million from the state's rainy day fund to pay for raises for 'hard-to-fill' school positions. A conceptual amendment would tack on $38 million for the charter school teacher raises over the next two years. 'Now, I'm going to acknowledge right away that asking for a transfer out of the state's rainy day fund is a serious request and I believe one that is probably going to cause members of this committee and others some concern and some discontent,' Yeager said as he presented Assembly Bill 389 (AB389) to the Assembly Ways and Means Committee. 'Let me tell you why I'm proposing it. 'I do think that it is accurate to say that it is already raining and has been raining when it comes to filling hard-to-fill positions. And if we are being honest with ourselves, things are only likely to get worse when it comes to education and education funding given what is happening at the federal level at the moment,' Yeager said. Republicans who voted against the entire education budget to protest the absence of raises for charter school teachers applauded Yeager's efforts on Thursday. Lombardo threatens to veto education budget over missing charter school teacher raises The bill received some opposition from unions that objected to education support professionals (ESAs) being left out of the plan. Yeager addressed that issue as he answered questions about the bill. 'I didn't believe it would be fiscally responsible for me to include them now, and and I don't want to spread the funding too thin so that it doesn't work and achieve the objectives of actually filling these hard-to-fill positions,' he said. John Vellardita of the Clark County Education Association helped present the bill, affirming that funding allocated by the 2023 Legislature made a big difference. That funding brought pay raises of about 20%. He told the committee that teacher vacancies have been reduced by about 53%, giving examples of the impact at elementary, middle and high schools in Clark County: 'We are very appreciative of the investment that was made last time. It was significant by this body, both in the allocation to the education budget as well as to SB231. It has made a difference down in Clark, and we're asking for this to continue.' AB389 takes 'a much more surgical approach' designed to make sure there's an educator in each classroom, Vellardita said. Two years ago, Title 1 schools with vacancy rates above 5% were targeted. This time around, that threshold is much higher. That became clear as Yeager outlined the definition of 'hard-to-fill' positions. They fit into two categories as defined by AB389: A teacher position at a Title 1 school which has: A vacancy rate of 15% or more (high school) A vacancy rate of 12% or more (middle school or junior high) A vacancy rate of 10% or more (elementary school) 'A teacher position or other position staffed by a person licensed under Chapter 391 of the NRS who is a teacher of record assigned to a classroom and whose duties include actively teaching pupils during a class period for the majority of the class periods during the school day in English language arts, mathematics, science or special education is such subjects are suffering from a critical labor shortage as determined by the board of trustees of the school district.' Besides the vacancy rates, the definition adds special education teachers to the list. If AB389 passes, the program would remain completely separate from the education budget. It would run through the Interim Finance Committee, with funds distributed to the Department of Education, which would disburse funds to school districts. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
