NEW YORK, CMC – New York Attorney General Letitia James is celebrating a significant victory for Caribbean and other immigrant children, as well as for students, families, and schools across the United States, as the US Department of Education (ED) has released nearly US$7 billion in critical education funding that the Trump administration had unlawfully frozen.
The reversal follows a lawsuit filed last month by Attorney General James and 22 other attorneys general, as well as by the governors of Pennsylvania and Kentucky, challenging ED’s abrupt decision to halt this funding.
James said the New York State Education Department (NYSED) has received notice that all previously frozen grant funding has been awarded and will be released.
“This is a huge win for our schools, our students, and the rule of law,” Attorney General James told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC). “When the administration abruptly froze billions in education funding, they jeopardized afterschool childcare programs, teacher support services, and vital classroom resources just weeks before the new school year.”
In July, James said, “We took swift legal action, and today we are celebrating the results.
“I will always stand up to protect our students and New York State,” she pledged.
NYSED Commissioner Betty A. Rosa said: “We are grateful that the federal government has fulfilled its commitment to the students of New York state by reinstating the grant funds that were previously withheld.
“These vital resources will empower both schools and districts to provide critical supports and services to their students, educators, and school communities,” she said.
“We thank the Attorney General and our congressional delegation for their collaboration in advocating for the restoration of this funding,” Rosa added. “The State Education Department and Board of Regents remain committed to working with all levels of government to ensure every student receives the high-quality education they deserve.”
James said that, on June 30, the Trump administration unlawfully froze funding for six congressionally authorized education programs just weeks before schools were set to open in many states.
She said the funding supports a wide range of services, including education for English learners and Caribbean immigrant children, classroom technology, afterschool enrichment programs, adult education, mental health services, and workforce development initiatives.
In New York, James said more than US$463 million in federal funding was frozen overnight, leaving many summer programs unfunded and threatening services set to begin in the fall.
The New York Attorney General said the funds that were frozen constitute 13 percent of New York State’s total K-12 education funding, and the majority goes directly to New York’s 730 school districts, which had to scramble to address significant budget shortfalls.
On July 14, James and the coalition filed their lawsuit and a motion for a preliminary injunction, arguing that the freeze violated multiple federal laws, including statutes authorizing and appropriating funds for the affected programs, federal budget procedures, and constitutional provisions like the separation of powers and the Presentment Clause.
Last week, the ED sent New York grant award notices for all six of the impacted programs, confirming that the frozen funding would be released in its entirety.
“The release of this federal education funding means that critical programs can now resume just in time for the upcoming school year,” James said.
She said this includes more than US$125 million for teacher training and development, US$107 million to improve school safety and classroom environments, and US$102 million to support afterschool and summer programs that working families rely on for childcare and enrichment.
James said English language learners – especially in New York City, where nearly half of public school students speak a language other than English at home – will “once again have access to vital literacy and language instruction.”
She said the funds also restore US$52 million for adult education and workforce development programs, as well as US$10 million to support Caribbean and other immigrant students.
“Thousands of students will now be able to return to summer learning programs that had been canceled, and at least 67 full-time jobs at NYSED will be preserved,” the New York Attorney General said.
and then 