More than ten ongoing projects aimed at strengthening classroom instruction and school based social services in low income communities are set to stop after the federal government abruptly cancelled tens of millions of dollars in education grants late last week. The decision came just two weeks before the next round of scheduled funding was due.
What the Full Service Community Schools programme supports
The United States Department of Education currently lists more than seventy recipients of active five year grants under its Full Service Community Schools programme. These grants support school districts, colleges, universities and non profit organisations that provide services such as food assistance, housing support, medical care and counselling within school buildings.Last Friday, between twelve and twenty grant recipients received formal letters informing them that their funding would not continue, according to Education Week. The letters stated that the projects would receive no further federal money with immediate effect. At least one recipient under the Promise Neighborhoods programme received a similar notice of non continuation.Collectively, the seventy active Community Schools grantees were expecting more than 380 million dollars in federal funding between now and 2028. All of the cancelled grants still had two or three years of funding remaining within their original five year terms.
Cuts linked to administration wide grant reviews
One non continuation letter dated 12 December, reviewed by Education Week, cited concerns that mirror language used in letters sent to more than 200 other federal education grant recipients across nearly twenty programmes in recent months. The Trump administration has been reviewing existing grants and discontinuing those it claims are linked to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Appeals allowed, but on a short timeline
“The grant is therefore inconsistent with, and no longer effectuates, the best interest of the Federal Government and will not be continued,” wrote Murray Bessette, the Trump appointed acting head of the Department of Education’s Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development, Education Week reports. Grantees have up to one week to submit an appeal request to Kirsten Baesler, the department’s assistant secretary overseeing kindergarten to grade twelve programmes.
Lack of clarity from the Education Department
The Department of Education has not publicly confirmed how many grants were discontinued, nor has it released a list of affected recipients. It remains unclear whether all remaining Community Schools and Promise Neighborhoods grantees have received confirmation that their funding will continue.When asked directly whether Community Schools grants had been cut, the department did not provide a clear response. In an email, Madi Biedermann, deputy assistant secretary for communications, said the Trump administration was repurposing discontinued grants into what she described as “high quality programmes that better serve special needs students”.
Community schools and their federal role
Community schools sit at the centre of the current funding dispute. These schools partner with local organisations and public agencies to provide extended learning time, healthcare access, tutoring, meals, internships and family support services. Federal investment in the model dates back to the late 1970s, with funding significantly expanded during the Biden administration. Congress increased annual funding for the Full Service Community Schools programme from 25 million dollars to 150 million dollars starting in 2023.Promise Neighborhoods, launched following a 2008 campaign pledge by former President Barack Obama, focus on academic and social support in high need communities and are modelled on the Harlem Children’s Zone.
Proposed eliminations and staffing disruptions
Earlier this year, the Trump administration proposed eliminating funding for both programmes in its fiscal year 2026 budget. In October, all but one staff member in the office managing these grants were laid off. Although Congress later reversed those layoffs, employment guarantees for those workers currently extend only until 30 January.Both programmes are also included in the administration’s plan to transfer several Education Department functions to the Department of Labor. That proposal has already prompted a legal challenge from twenty state attorneys general.
Congress divided over future funding
Lawmakers remain divided. Senate appropriators have proposed maintaining funding for Promise Neighborhoods while reducing Community Schools funding by 15 million dollars. The House of Representatives has passed a budget proposal that would eliminate funding for both programmes entirely, citing overlap with other government services.
Cuts follow a broader pattern
The latest cancellations add to a wider pattern. As Education Week has reported, the Department of Education has cancelled hundreds of grants across roughly twenty congressionally mandated programmes this year, including initiatives supporting special education teacher training, English learner instruction, college preparation and disability rights advocacy.While a small number of grant recipients have successfully appealed, most cancellations remain in place. Many appeals have been rejected in letters signed by Lindsey Burke, a senior Trump appointed official and a contributor to the conservative policy document Project 2025.For community schools already operating on tight margins, the impact of these decisions is immediate. Projects built on long term funding commitments now face closure, staff reductions or service cuts, with limited clarity on whether or when alternative support may arrive.
