Connecticut Attorney General William Tong has secured an agreement to prevent the Trump Administration from withholding nearly $400 million in federal education funds from the state and local districts that are committed to promoting equal access to education in K-12 classrooms through policies that recognize the value of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.
“Connecticut schools have always and will always comply with federal civil rights laws,” Tong said. “Trump and McMahon tried to force MAGA ideology on Connecticut students and teachers by illegally withholding taxpayer dollars. We stopped them, and we’re going to keep fighting and winning to protect Connecticut families.”
Tong joined a coalition with 18 other states to sue the U.S. Department of Education last April after the Department informed state and local education agencies that they must agree to the Trump Administration’s new interpretation of the Civil Rights Act or risk losing out on federal education funds.
“We applaud Attorney General William Tong on his successful efforts to ensure Connecticut students have the resources they need to succeed in school,” said CEA President Kate Dias. “These funds are earmarked for meeting the needs of individual students, and the federal government doesn’t have the right to tie that money to any policy directive. Connecticut educators provide all students with welcoming environments where they are supported and can thrive, and we are proud to live and work in a state that values inclusion, equity, and opportunity for all.”
The nearly $400 million in congressionally mandated funding that had been threatened provides a variety of services to Connecticut children each year. This funding includes financial support to ensure that students from low-income families have the same access to high-quality education as their peers, provides for special education services, allows districts to recruit and train highly skilled teachers, funds programming for non-native speakers to learn English, and provides support to vulnerable children in foster care and without housing.
