KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A federal education funding freeze is hitting the metro, as Olathe Public Schools fears it could lose more than $1 million in essential funding.
The U.S. Department of Education has decided to withhold nearly $7 billion in congressionally approved education funding, which was authorized for the current fiscal year. At the same time, the department reviews the funding for its alignment with the Trump administration’s priorities.
“Students in every school district, in every community, in every state, rely on federal funding for public schools,” Olathe Public Schools said in a news release.
“Last week, school districts across the nation were notified of a freeze on federal education grant funding that could directly impact our schools, students and staff.”
These cuts primarily affect programs that support our most at-risk populations, including low-income students, English language learners and students with disabilities, the school district said.
The school district said withholding these funds would result in a loss of more than $1 million in federal funding to directly support students and staff.
The funding freeze will impact the district in the following ways:
- $452,248 withheld from training, recruitment, and retention of highly qualified teachers.
- $368,851 withheld from language instruction for ELL and immigrant students.
- $130,627 withheld from mental health services for students and trauma-informed care.
- $80,000 withheld from ensuring all migrant children reach rigorous standards.
Nearly $570,000 is already obligated toward staff salaries and benefits, Olathe Public Schools said.
The school district said it is monitoring the situation closely. If these federal funds remain withheld, the district said it will reallocate funding from other budget sources to reduce the impact of this budget reduction on students and staff.
“This would cause strain in other areas by forcing the district to reallocate funds,” Olathe Public Schools said in a news release.
FOX4 is working to learn how other school districts could be impacted by the Trump administration’s federal education funding freeze.
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