Tucson Unified School District facing $6 million in federal funding losses

Southern Arizona’s largest school district is set to lose millions in federal funding for student services and teacher training, following the Trump administration’s freeze on major K-12 grant programs.

On June 30, the Department of Education notified school districts across the county that they would withhold over $6 billion in federal payments for Title II, Title III, and Title IV education funding, to ensure they were paying for programs aligned with the administration’s priorities.

Tucson Unified School District Superintendent Gabriel Trujillo said his district’s portion of that money amounts to $6 million, and has left his district of just under 40,000 students scrambling to find ways to fill a massive financial gap a few weeks before school starts.

“You are taking money away from students,” he said. “You're taking away important academic services, and more importantly, you're taking away academic interventions for students that are struggling academically, and you're doing that in some of the most underserved communities in the state of Arizona with some of the most struggling learners.”

In a statement, TUSD spokesperson Karla Escamilla said the grants pay for professional development for teachers, English learner programs, fine arts, and afterschool programs.

Trujillo said the hardest cut will be felt by afterschool programs funded by the Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant under Title IV. He said parents at 22 TUSD schools rely on the afternoon programs for childcare, but also for academic remediation.

“We rely on those programs to deliver interventions for students to get them really ready for the testing season. That affects our letter grades, that affects proficiency rates that we're already under scrutiny for, and more importantly, it affects the student,” he said

The Trump administration has also paused a portion of dollars that trains teachers to work with students who are still learning English.

“It really focuses on how math teachers and science teachers can modify their lessons and instruction and make them more accessible for students who are not yet fluent in English,” Trujillo said.

According to student data from TUSD, over 5,400 students participated in English language learner programs in the last school year.

Trujillo said it is likely the question of continuing to fund these programs will fall to the voters in the upcoming budget override election. Budget overrides are voter-approved measures that allow a district to exceed its state-imposed budget limits to pay employee salaries and academic initiatives.

According to the nonprofit Learning Policy Institute, the $118 million currently being withheld from Arizona makes up just under 12% of the state’s total federal funding share. The analysis shows the Trump administration’s cuts account for at least 10% to all states nationwide.

Earlier this week, Democratic Senator Mark Kelly and Congressman Greg Stanton (D-Phoenix) wrote a letter to the Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon and the Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, demanding that they release the funds.

“This freeze is putting Arizona school districts in an impossible financial situation, as school districts have already adopted their annual budgets and signed contracts for the upcoming school year,” the letter reads.

TUSD students go back to school on Aug. 4, and the federally funded programs will be in place at least for the beginning of the school year, Trujillo said. He initially told the Bill Buckmaster show on July 8 that federally funded programming would stop Oct 1, but said at a press conference on July 10 the district is unable to give a specific date.

Trujillo asked TUSD parents worried about the future of afterschool programs to be patient.

“We're putting some plans together. There will be communication coming soon, okay, but hang in there with us,” he said.