AFT Massachusetts Stands with Senator Markey’s Calls to Safeguard Federal Education Funding (February 27, 2025)
American Federation of Teachers President Jessica Tang released the following statement in response to the No Cuts to Public Schools Act, legislation filed by Massachusetts Senator Edward J. Markey that would safeguard funds for public schools during the length of the Trump Administration, specifically those that allow public schools to serve low-income students, English learners, students with disabilities, homeless students, and students attending rural schools:
“Public schools are the latest battleground in the Trump administration’s war between the billionaires and regular working people. We need federal policy that puts kids first and creates opportunities and pathways to a better life. It will take decades for our families, our educators, our economy, our democracy and our nation’s standing to recover from this reckless and thoughtless destruction of public education in America.
“Educators know dismantling the Department of Education and slashing federal funding or replacing them with block grants would be catastrophic, especially for the Commonwealth’s most vulnerable children – like the over 183,000 students with disabilities receiving support through IDEA, the over 41,000 infants and toddlers who receive Early Intervention, and the hundreds of schools with disproportionate levels of low-income students that rely on $206 million in Title I funding.
“Without intervention, we stand to lose generations of students who will be left behind.”
For more information, please read Senator Markey’s press release on what the bill does, which also includes a copy of the bill.