Wisconsin to Receive $73 Million in Federal Education Funding After Months-Long Freeze

Wisconsin officials had been warning about the devastating impact of the federal education funding freeze, which has left nearly 56,000 children learning English as a second language and close to 34,000 adult learners affected. The state's Attorney General, Josh Kaul, had joined a lawsuit challenging the administration's decision, citing the costs of the withheld funds. The funding freeze had been in place since July 1, with an estimated $72.6 million 11.5% of the state's total federal K-12 funding withheld. The Department of Education has now announced that it will begin sending the nearly $6.2 billion in funds to states next week, including nearly $73 million to Wisconsin.

Key Takeaways:

• The Trump administration's decision to unfreeze federal education funding means that nearly $73 million in K-12 funding will flow to Wisconsin, potentially avoiding cuts that state officials had warned would lead to layoffs and the shuttering of educational programs.
• An estimated $72.6 million, or 11.5% of the state's total federal K-12 funding, has been withheld since July 1.
• Some of the withheld funds support educational programs for migrant children and English language learners.
• Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul had joined a lawsuit challenging the administration's decision, citing the costs of the withheld funds.
• The funding freeze had affected nearly 56,000 children learning English as a second language and close to 34,000 adult learners across the state's technical colleges.
• Wisconsin school districts had finalized their budgets before the freeze, leaving them little flexibility to absorb the shortfall.
• The withheld funds had forced the Wisconsin Technical College System to cancel professional development activities, and staff layoffs may soon follow.

Statistics:

• $73 million: the amount of K-12 funding that will flow to Wisconsin after months-long freeze
• 11.5%: the percentage of state's total federal K-12 funding withheld since July 1
• 56,000: the number of children learning English as a second language in Wisconsin
• 6.9%: the percentage of state's total K-12 public school population that are English language learners
• 34,000: the number of adult learners across the state's technical colleges affected by the funding freeze
• $72.6 million: the estimated amount of federal K-12 funding withheld in Wisconsin
• $7.5 million: the amount of adult education grants withheld
• $6.2 billion: the amount of federal education funds being sent to states next week

Sources:

• The Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wis.)
• Tribune Content Agency, LLC