Two lawsuits are challenging the U.S. Department of Education's decision in December to cancel about $60 million in grants for programs in K-12 schools that provide academic, health and social services, particularly in low-income and rural communities.
According to a lawsuit filed by the American Federation of Teachers and Chicago's Brighton Park Neighborhood Council, the Education Department discontinued 19 multi-year Full-Service Community Schools grants on Dec. 12. The funds were set to expire Dec. 31. The lawsuit, which was filed Dec. 29, says the cancellation of the funding was unlawful and violates the Administrative Procedure Act.
Brighton Park Neighborhood Council receives funding from the Full-Service Community Schools program to provide wraparound services at eight schools in the Chicago area, including at Curie Metro High School where students have access to after-school programs like STEM clubs, workforce development, college mentoring and academic tutoring.
Patrick Brosnan, executive director of Brighton Park Neighborhood Council, said the organization was "shocked and dismayed to learn of the termination of our FSCS grant," according to a Dec. 29 statement issued by Democracy Forward, which is representing the plaintiffs.
"We hope and pray that these necessary grant funds are restored, and we can continue to provide the needed services so that all students and families in our community can achieve their goals and thrive,” Brosnan said.
In a separate lawsuit filed Dec. 30, the attorneys general of Maryland, the District of Columbia and North Carolina challenged the Education Department's action. The two states and D.C. said they were in the middle of five-year grant cycles totaling between $1.9 million and $50 million when they got notice that their grants would be terminated, according to the complaint.
In Maryland, for example, the funding has helped increase attendance at two Baltimore high schools and has provided housing assistance for students, the lawsuit stated.
“The Department of Education’s unlawful decision to abruptly cut funding for FSCS programs will strip hundreds of Maryland students and families of essential support for food, housing, and educational resources,” said Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, in a Dec. 31 statement.
Under the Full-Service Community Schools program, the Education Department provides grants to historically Black colleges and universities, higher education institutions, nonprofits and local school districts to provide a variety of health, social, financial and academic services based on local needs. In fiscal year 2025, the program was funded nationally at $150 million.
Conflicts with Trump administration priorities
Madi Biedermann, deputy assistant secretary for communications at the Education Department, said in an email Monday that the grant funding wasn't being cut. Rather, the money is being reinvested "immediately into high quality programs that better serve special needs students."
Biedermann said that the non-continued grants didn't align with Trump administration priorities. She said many of the grant programs "use overt race preferences or perpetuate divisive concepts and stereotypes, which no student should be exposed to."
Some examples from the discontinued grants that conflict with Trump administration priorities, according to Biedermann, include:
- The prioritization of staffing recruitment and development strategies “that foster DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] and growth among schools.”
- A grantee that planned to implement a “district equity plan including equity in grading and curriculum, professional development, crisis and community response, social and emotional learning, discipline, and school climate and culture.”
- Professional development activities that “focus on anti-racism practices at the school system level, as well as trainings focused on culturally responsive practices in and out of the classroom.”
"The Trump Administration is no longer allowing taxpayer dollars to go out the door on autopilot — we are evaluating every federal grant to ensure they are in line with the Administration’s policy of prioritizing merit, fairness, and excellence in education," Biedermann said.
Over the past year, U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon has sought to shrink the size of the federal agency through staff reductions and budget tightening. McMahon and President Donald Trump have said the ultimate goal is to eliminate the Education Department.
The Trump administration's scrutiny over Education Department programs and practices has included moves to eliminate activities supportive of DEI and LGBTQ+ initiatives, including certain grant programs for student mental health programming, deafblind student services and teacher training grants.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, in the Dec. 29 statement issued by Democracy Forward, said the Education Department did not attempt to communicate with districts or even request to ask for modifications when discontinuing the Full-Service Community School grants.
"These grants were simply terminated on a whim," said Weingarten, adding that for every $1 spent on community schools, there is a $7 return on investment.
"For a secretary who claims she’s concerned about achievement and attendance, why terminate a program that boosts both?" Weingarten asked. "And for a secretary who is crisscrossing the country talking about civics, why not simply follow the law and allocate the community school grants to the districts that have been counting on them?”
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