The Trump administration appears poised to withhold more $6.8 billion nationwide in funding for Title 3 – an educational funding stream used to support English learners and children of migrant families.
School districts in the Central Valley have paid close attention to the battle over this funding since the president’s budget proposal in May. Now, districts are strategizing how to continue supporting their most vulnerable students.
Congress appropriated the funding last October, and the funds were expected to reach school districts across the nation starting July 1. But the administration is holding back the funds and reviewing the 2025 grant funding for educational programs, according to Politico.
“The Department remains committed to ensuring taxpayer resources are spent in accordance with the President’s priorities and the Department’s statutory responsibilities,” federal educational representatives said in a statement to Politico.
Advocacy groups around the country are sounding the alarm as uncertainty looms over when the funding will become available. In a press conference Tuesday, a coalition of education leaders said the lack of federal dollars could be “catastrophic” for districts in every state.
“We're calling on the administration to stop playing politics and immediately release these funds without further delay,” said Amalia Chamorro, UnidosUS education policy director. “Our students deserve better.”
The money was allocated to provide resources to increase teacher training, after-school programs and classroom technology.
According to the Learning Policy Center, all 50 states could see an overall decrease of at least 10% in their total funding for educational programs.
Four programs aimed at supporting students will feel the crunch the most – Migrant Education under Title 1; supporting effective instruction and teacher training under Title 2; English Language Acquisition under Title 3; and resources for Community Learning Centers in socioeconomically disadvantaged schools under Title 5.
“These are not luxuries in our schools. These are lifelines, especially in our most under-resourced districts,” Oxnard School District Superintendent Ana DeGenna said at the press conference.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration proposed cutting the Department of Education by 20%, slashing millions of dollars from programs that aid English language learners, migrant students, and students with disabilities.
It’s unclear when the allotted funds will be dispersed.
“English language learners cannot wait. Districts cannot wait. Teachers cannot wait,” said Margarita Machado-Casas of the National Association of Bilingual Education. “These are programs, staff positions, and lifelines for millions of students who deserve equitable access to education.”
Valley schools bracing for financial crunch
Districts in California were expected to receive up to $811 million in federal funding – 16% of its total K-12 funding.
California is home to more than one million multilingual learners, nearly a quarter of the entire public K-12 student population, according to state data.
In the culturally-diverse central San Joaquin Valley – where roughly one in five students are learning English as a second language – federal dollars account for a large portion of funding in school districts.
At Fresno Unified, the state’s third-largest school district, the superintendent said in a statement district officials are “deeply outraged” by the funding freeze. The district could lose up to $7.1 million dollars in federal funding for “vital educational programs”.
“At Fresno Unified, our commitment to every student remains unwavering,” said Superintendent Misty Her in a statement. “As your Superintendent, I will do everything within my power to protect our students and shield them from the consequences of these harmful cuts. We will continue to advocate relentlessly for the funding our students deserve.”
FUSD is expected to release a full updated budget report next week.
Clovis Unified School District serves 2,000 English learners – a small percentage of its 42,000 student population. Last year, the district received $350,000 under the Title 3 funding stream. The dollars were used to serve its designated EL population, primarily in training its teachers to effectively instruct second language students.
However, the funding freeze can potentially cause a bigger ripple in its budget.
In an email statement, Clovis Unified spokesperson Kelly Avants said the district could lose approximately $2.2 million if the funding cut is authorized. The projected loss accounts for $1.2 million from Title 2, $277,00 from Title 3, and $747,000 from Title 4. The district also is reviewing what the impact could be on its Adult Education grants.
“We are hopeful [the proposed cuts] won't be necessary, but we are prepared to pivot as needed to ensure the needs of our students served by these funding streams are met,” Avants said.
Mendota Unified in rural west Fresno County, however, has not noticed any indication that federal funding will change for the district. The district serves 4,000 students, with nearly half designated as English learners.
According to Jose Ochoa, director of state and federal programs, the district submitted its application for federal funding in early June. The district is expecting to receive around $400,000 – the same dollar amount that it has received in past years, Ochoa said.
Much of the funding for Mendota Unified comes from the Local Control Funding Formula, which accounts for more than half of its $60 million annual budget.
“If federal funds get axed or rolled back, [LCFF] funds will allow us to continue to service EL kids and migrant kids the same way we always have,” Ochoa said. “We’re very blessed that we have the funding to help us keep our programs.”